Damascus : More than 100 rebels were killed Wednesday by Syrian troops in an ambush in the eastern countryside of the capital Damascus, media reported.
The troops ambushed the rebels at al-Ataibeh suburb in the Eastern Ghouta countryside of Damascus, Xinhua reported citing the local media and the pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV.
It added that the rebels were radicals from the Al Qaeda-inspired Nusra Front.
Meanwhile, official SANA news agency said the ambush was based on “intelligence information”, and dozens of rebels from the Nusra Front and the so-called Islam Brigade were killed.
The report said most of those killed were Saudis, Qataris and Chechens, and added the troops confiscated their weapons as well.
The rebels, backed by foreign jihadis, have for long opted to launch planned attacks on the Eastern Ghouta countryside, in a bid to break the Syrian government’s control over the area surrounding the capital.
Opposition fighters are reportedly planning a large-scale offensive in the countryside of Damascus that is controlled by the government to break its siege and to halt its progress in central Syria.
The Lebanese al-Manar TV and pro-government Syrian TV outlets said some Western and Arab countries are stepping up support for rebels in Syria, mainly in the southern province of Daraa, bordering Jordan.
There have been reports that thousands of Syrian rebels are getting special training in camps on the Syrian-Jordanian border, about 98 km from Daraa, to carry out attacks in Damascus.