MEDIA ACCUSES SYRIAN ARMY OF USING CHEMICAL WEAPONS AFTER MILITANTS’ DEFENSE COLLAPSES IN EASTERN GHOUTA (MAP, VIDEO)

11.03.2018

On March 11, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and the Tiger Forces supported by the Russian Aerospace Forces split the East Ghouta pocket into two parts and fully isolated the Duma district after they had captured the strategic district of Mudayrah, according to the Hezbollah media wing in Syria. Following the liberation of Mudayrah, SAA and Tiger Forces units reached the SAA positions around the Armored Vehicles Base.

Currently, the Jaysh al-Islam militant group is besieged in the Duma district, while Faylaq al-Rahman, Ahrar al-Sham and Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) are besieged in the rest of the East Ghouta pocket.

According to Syrian pro-government sources, this major breakthrough will allow the SAA to negotiate with Jaysh al-Islam face to face. This means that a peaceful solution in Douma is more possible now as Faylaq al-Rahman and its allies have sabotaged all the previous peaceful efforts.

Only minutes after the SAA advance, the Qatari al-Jazeera TV claimed that the SAA had attacked civilians in the Irbin district in the western East Ghouta pocket with “chlorine gas”. As usual, the Qatari channel didn’t provide any evidence what so ever to support its claims. Moreover, several Syrian opposition sources didn’t release any reports about the supposed “chemical attack”.

Over the last three months, militants in the East Ghouta and the mainstream media have claimed that the SAA have used chemical weapons against civilians dozens of times. However, they have never presented any real evidence. Even the US acknowledged on one occasion that it got no evidence to support these claims.

The recent Al-Jazeera report is likely nothing more than a propaganda stunt aimed at providing a media cover for militants. Some opposition figures believe that only a US military action could save the besieged the militants in East Ghouta.

Breaking map: Syrian Army slices apart militant pocket in east Damascus

By Andrew Illingworth

11/03/2018

map15 — East Ghouta pocket after Syrian Army seizes Mudayrah town (Credit: Islamic World News).

BEIRUT, LEBANON (5:14 P.M.) – Hours ago, the Syrian Army’s elite Tiger Forces Division seized the militant-controlled district town of Mudayrah in Damascus’ East Ghouta region.

The battle to capture the rebel stronghold lasted several hours and saw elite Syrian troops combat insurgents of Jaysh al-Islam and Al-Qaeda affiliate militia Ha’yat Tahrir al-Sham (better known by its former name, Jabhat al-Nusra).

By taking Mudayrah, assault units of the Tiger Forces Division linked up with the Syrian troops holding out in the now famous Vehicle Management Base in Arbeen district and officially split the East Ghouta pocket into two.

Now it stands that the militant stronghold city of Douma and jihadist-controlled town of Harasta have been isolated from all other rebel-held areas of East Ghouta further south.

It appears that the Syrian Army’s job of slicing up the East Ghouta pocket is not yet over. To this end, all military developments indicate that the jihadist stronghold of Harasta is yet to be physically separated from Douma city.