DAMASCUS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army stormed the outskirts of the Ain Fijeh town, where the main water spring feeding the capital Damascus is located, under cover of heavy rocket fire on Wednesday, in the latest bid to restore that area to resume the water pumping into Damascus, the Syrian military media said.
The army backed by the Lebanese Hezbollah fighters stormed the outskirts of Ain Fijeh town in the Barada Valley, northwest of Damascus, amid rocket and artillery shelling targeting the rebel positions in that area, where the Ain Fijeh spring is located.
The aim of the wide-scale offensive is to recapture the spring, and secure the resumption of the water pumping to Damascus, which has been struggling with the scarcity of water since Dec. 22, when the spring went out of service due to the intensity of battles.
Opposition activists said intense battles raged on Wednesday between the Syrian government forces backed by Hezbollah and an array of rebel groups in Barada Valley, coupled with tens of airstrikes on that area.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Syrian air force targeted the rebel positions in that area with tens of airstrikes.
Both conflicting parties exchanged accusations over the water crisis in Damascus, as the government accused the rebels' al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front of cutting the water deliberately to use it as a weapon to push the government to succumb to their demands, while the rebels blamed the government forces' shelling for the damage that had befallen the spring.
The capital's over five million inhabitants have been struggling to secure their needs of water, with the government using its reserve wells to partially feed Damascus with water.
Meanwhile, a military source told Xinhua that the Nusra militants started setting homes on fire in Ain Fijeh area, as a sort of revenge for the military's resolve to take that area.
This comes a week after a truce was reached in that area for the government to enter and fix the spring, in exchange of allowing ultra-radical groups to evacuate the area to the northwestern province of Idlib.
However, the truce was quick to fall on Saturday, as the rebels with Nusra Front fired sniper shots at maintenance workers, who entered the area to fix the spring.
They also shot dead retired Brigadier Ahmad Ghadban, who was tasked by President Bashar al-Assad to supervise the truce and the reconciliation file in Barada.
The truce deal walked on thorny road till it was reached last Wednesday, as the Nusra Front was among the rebels who attempted to repeatedly thwart any understanding with the government.
GRE阅读高频词汇(F—H)
gre词汇速记有技巧
GRE词汇词根整理:ag
新GRE高频词汇:成语及俗语
gre考试真题常见形容词词汇-a字母开头
gre词汇快速背诵技巧
GRE词汇记忆新思路:苹果梨的罪过
新GRE词汇巧记方法
新GRE单词abandon四考法
教你巧背新GRE词汇
快速攻克GRE词汇 需紧抓规律
GRE词汇记忆妙招:悟空八戒偷吃天宫筵席
看英文电影快速记GRE词汇(三)
GRE词汇记忆新方法:三国英雄谱
新GRE考试新增词汇精选
GRE词汇轻松记忆:骑士与土著人
gre考试真题常见形容词词汇-f字母开头
GRE阅读高频词汇(A—C)
新GRE词汇整理:asperity
GRE词汇:希腊神话和荷马史诗
全面剖析蓝宝书GRE词汇
gre考试真题常见形容词词汇-t字母开头
GRE词汇词根整理:agri
如何有效攻克GRE单词
新GRE词汇不同的考法
GRE阅读高频词汇(T-Y)
gre常见词汇词根词缀总结-v
GRE阅读高频词汇(S)
新GRE高频词汇:整理助于记忆
GRE词汇30天搞定
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |