Syrian Forces Move Closer To The Southern Borders

Southern Offensive: Rebels Pushed Into a Corner by Syrian Arab Army

Syrian government forces' southern offensive is going on full throttle. The Syrian army is seeking to regain control over the Syria-Jordan border, thus severing alleged supply routes of illegal militant groups operating in the south.

It appears that the liberation of Daraa and neighboring provinces is just a matter of time: on July 5, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) reached the border with Jordan amid its southern offensive.

While retreating, Syrian rebel forces are leaving arms and ammunition stockpiles. According to Sputnik sources, members of illegal militant groups in the city of Busra al-Sham (Bosra) started surrendering heavy weapons and hardware to government forces on July 4. Bosra has long been one of the major strongholds of rebels in the south of Syria, being located about 12 miles from the Syrian-Jordanian border.

Earlier, Izra was retaken by the SAA's assault units without striking a blow. However, most of the province still remains under the control of the armed opposition and terrorist organizations, including former al-Qaeda* affiliate al-Nusra Front* and Ahrar al-Sham.

Taking Syria-Jordan Border Under Control

As Sputnik military observer Andrei Kots highlighted in his recent op-ed, the main goal of the SAA's southern offensive is to take the border points under control. "It was partially achieved at the site between the border of the province of Suwayda and the town of Es Summakiyat. And the army obviously does not intend to make a stop there," he noted.

On July 6, the SAA took control over the Nasib crossing point on the border with Jordan due to successful negotiations between the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation and rebel leaders.

The Russian center for Syrian reconciliation earlier reported that over the last week, almost 27 settlements in the southern zone of de-escalation in the provinces of Quneitra, Essaouira and Daraa had voluntarily joined the ceasefire regime and come down on the side of the government of the Syrian Arab Republic.

According to Kots, the liberation of Daraa is unlikely to bring an end to the seven-year long conflict, as the province of Idlib still remains under control of terrorists. According to some estimates, about 30,000 jihadi fighters are located there.

Damascus has yet to regain control over its northern region that is being held by the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). It has been repeatedly reported that the US is beefing up its presence in the north by establishing bases there.

According to the military observer, it is unlikely that Damascus will resort to the use of force in northern Syria. "It is more probable that the Syrian war will continue through diplomatic means," he presumed.