Beirut: The Nusra Front, Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Syria, has seized seven villages in the northern Syrian province of Idlib over the past few hours, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Tuesday.
The radical organisation took the villages of Kansafra, Baluon, Ablin, Abdita, Mugara and Mashun, following clashes with Syria’s Revolutionaries Front, which is linked to the Free Syrian Army.
The jihadis advanced after launching an assault on Idlib city, which is in the hands of forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
A large part of Idlib province is under rebel control, but several cities remain under the power of government forces.
The Nusra Front moved its fighters, who were on the outskirts of Aleppo province, to Idlib in the past few months, due to the rapid advance of its rival jihadi group, the Islamic State.