BEIRUT/AMMAN: The Syrian army and its allies seized control of a 30 km (19 mile) stretch of Syria’s border with Jordan from rebels in an attack on Thursday, two rebel groups said.
A military media unit run by Hezbollah, a close ally of the Syrian government, said the army and its allies had gained control over all checkpoints and border posts on the border in Sweida, one of four Syrian provinces that border Jordan.
Rebel groups, some of them backed by Western and Arab states, still control much of Syria’s southwestern frontier with Jordan and Israel.
Sweida province was not included in a US-Russian brokered cease-fire that took effect in nearby areas of the southwest in July.
Said Saef, spokesman for the Western-backed rebel group Martyr Ahmed Abdo brigade, said Thursday’s attack came from two sides in Sweida’s east countryside. “Most of the eastern Sweida countryside is now in the hands of the regime,” he added.
The army had advanced to the border and retaken posts it abandoned in the early years of the conflict when rebels took over large parts of south western Syria.
“They are now on the Jordanian border and back to outposts they had evacuated early in the conflict,” said Saef.
Another rebel spokesman said the army gains were helped by a sudden pull-back by Jaish Al-Ashair rebel group, which is backed by Jordan and had been responsible for patrolling that stretch of the border.
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Syrian army gains ground on Jordan border in southwest
Syrian army gains ground on Jordan border in southwest
Teen killed after bus hits ultra-Orthodox protesters in Jerusalem
- Israeli police said they detained the driver and are investigating
- The 18-year-old, who had been trapped under the bus, was pronounced dead on the scene
JERUSALEM: A mass ultra-Orthodox Jewish rally against military conscription turned deadly in Jerusalem on Tuesday, when a teenage boy was crushed and killed after a man driving a bus hit the crowd.
The Israeli police said they detained the driver and are investigating. Video of the scene shows a bus driving straight into a crowd of ultra-Orthodox men at the demonstration, attended by thousands. Reuters could not immediately contact the driver while in police custody and police have not released his name.
Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services said the 18-year-old, who had been trapped under the bus, was pronounced dead on the scene.
The debate over mandatory military service, and those who are exempt from it, has long caused tensions within Israel’s deeply divided society and has placed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under increasing political strain over the past year. Ultra-Orthodox seminary students have long been exempt from mandatory military service. Many Israelis criticize what they see as an unfair burden carried by the majority who serve. The ultra-Orthodox resistance to joining the military is based on their strong sense of religious identity, which religious leaders say they fear risks being weakened by army service.
The issue of military service has been a central point of tension against a backdrop of heightened military activity. Over the past two years, Israel has seen its highest military death toll in decades from conflicts connected to the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
The Israeli police said they detained the driver and are investigating. Video of the scene shows a bus driving straight into a crowd of ultra-Orthodox men at the demonstration, attended by thousands. Reuters could not immediately contact the driver while in police custody and police have not released his name.
Israel’s Magen David Adom emergency services said the 18-year-old, who had been trapped under the bus, was pronounced dead on the scene.
The debate over mandatory military service, and those who are exempt from it, has long caused tensions within Israel’s deeply divided society and has placed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under increasing political strain over the past year. Ultra-Orthodox seminary students have long been exempt from mandatory military service. Many Israelis criticize what they see as an unfair burden carried by the majority who serve. The ultra-Orthodox resistance to joining the military is based on their strong sense of religious identity, which religious leaders say they fear risks being weakened by army service.
The issue of military service has been a central point of tension against a backdrop of heightened military activity. Over the past two years, Israel has seen its highest military death toll in decades from conflicts connected to the Gaza Strip, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
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