MOSCOW, January 28. /TASS/. /TASS/. The Syrian government forces have entered the city of Maarat al-Numan located in the southeast of the Idlib province, the Sky News Arabia TV channel informed on Tuesday.
According to the channel, the Syrian army has entered Maarat al-Numan, where a major outpost of Jabhat al-Nusra (terrorist organization outlawed in Russia) militants is located. The government forces have begun reconnaissance and military patrolling in the city.
It is also stated that Syrian army units are continuing to advance in southern Idlib.
Syrian government forces began to advance into Idlib on December 19, 2019. The military was able to liberate 46 settlements in southern and eastern Idlib, recovering 320 square kilometers of the territory. On Monday, units of the Syrian army surrounded an observation post of the Turkish army in the Maar Hattat settlement to the south of Maarat al-Numan.
Idlib is the only region of Syria that has remained under the control of illegal armed formations since 2012. In 2017, militants who refused to surrender in Eastern Ghouta and southern Syrian provinces moved to the de-escalation zone in Idlib. There are 12 observation posts of the Turkish army in the area.