Damascus: Syrian troops have recaptured a key town in the central province of Homs, media reported.
The Syrian troops, backed by paramilitary National Defence Forces, Thursday recaptured al-Husn, a large town of the Homs governorate in northwest Syria near the border with Lebanon.
The Syrian troops also took back control over the al-Husn Castle, a centuries-old Unesco heritage site located on a high hill in al-Husn town, putting the Syrian flag atop, according to Xinhua.
The Syrian Army said that its troops also restored security in other towns surrounding al-Husn.
This came just days after the army recaptured Yabroud in northern Damascus, known as the “revolution bastion” among the rebels.
The wide-scale military offensive in the northern countryside of Damascus and the central Homs province aims to cut off the rebels’ illegal smuggling routes from neighbouring Lebanon, and to secure the vicinity of Damascus and the international road that connects the southern parts of Syria with its central and northwestern parts.