...al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate, from which sprang the Islamic State...(HTS) in Idlib, after the latter’s bid to penetrate the government-held areas in Hama countryside.
These attempts come following government forces’ shelling of some of the displaced people’s camps in northwest of Idlib city, killing and wounding about 80 civilians.
The HTS (formerly al-Nusra
...formally Jabhat an-Nusrah li-Ahli al-Sham (Support Front for the People of the Levant), also known as al-Qaeda in the Levant. They aim to establish a pan-Arab caliphate. Not the same one as the Islamic State, though .. ...
Front) thwarted the Syrian government forces’ attempt to advance on the axes of Jabal al-Zawiya, south of Idlib.
A source in the al-Fateh al-Mubin Operations Room told North Press that the government forces tried early Monday to advance towards the HTS-held area in San in eastern part of Zawiya Mountain, south of Idlib.
"After detecting the attacking forces, the HTS’ members were able to thwart the attempt and force them to withdraw after killing and wounding about 12 soldiers," the source added, citing the words of the government’s emergency medical teams while speaking on walkie-talkies.
The government forces’ attempt in Zawiya Mountain was preceded by a similar one by an HTS-affiliated group. The group infiltrated the government’s positions in Jurin camp in the al-Ghab Plain in the far northwest of Hama Governorate.
According to the same source, the HTS’ group managed to penetrate into the government forces’ positions, sparking festivities between both parties, which resulted in the killing of three Death Eaters of the group and the killing and wounding of about 15 soldiers of the government forces.