The Syrian army and the National Defense Forces have liberated the village of Hawsh Ash Shalaq in the Eastern Ghouta region of Rif Damascus province on December 7, according to sources from the battlefield.
Government forces launched an advance in the area on December 6 and cut off the road between al-Shifuniyah and Autaya.
Now, the army and the NDF are developing their advance iin the direction of Hawsh Dawahra and the nearby military base. If government forces succeed in this, they will be able to use the Duma-Hashabiyah road to operate in the region and to pose two main threats to remaining Jaish al-Islam forces:
- To encircle a group of militant-held vilalges in the southeastern part of Eastern Ghouta;
- To develop the advance in the direction of Hashabiyah and further to attack Douma (the biggest militant stronghold in the area) from multiple directions.
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