Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — The regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has continued
to score victories over Sunni rebels.

Opposition sources said the Syrian Army, backed by aircraft, was
capturing rebel strongholds around Damascus. On April 24, Assad forces drove
out the rebels from Otaiba, described as a strategic hub for rebel units.

“This is a huge defeat for the rebels because Otaiba was where all the
weapons sent from Jordan were arriving,” an opposition source said.

The capture of Otaiba ended nearly 40 days of battle during the biggest
offensive by the Assad regime in nearly a year. The opposition acknowledged rebel defeats throughout the Damascus area as well as along the border with Jordan and Lebanon.

The sources said the Syrian Army victory at Otaiba would lead to the
defeat of the rebels throughout the area. They said the rebels were
struggling to maintain their positions amid a shortage of weapons and
fighters.

“If Otaiba falls, the whole of Eastern Ghouta [around Damascus] will
fall,” a message to rebel units said. “Come and help.”

The opposition reported a rebel offensive on the Latakia province,
described as the heart of the Assad regime. The coastal province was said to
contain a large presence of Iranian and Russian military personnel.

  Assad’s forces defeat rebels at key strategic hub near Damascus, Bashar Assad, Eastern Ghouta, Latakia province, Otaiba