Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — Sunni rebels trained by the United States were advancing in southern Syria, a report said.

The Washington Institute for Near East Policy said up to 20,000 rebels were operating in southern Syria, including along the borders of Israel and Jordan.

In a report, the institute said the rebels have overpowered the Syrian Army in several sectors and could pose a threat to Damascus.

“While rebel militias have lately suffered serious setbacks in central and northern Syria, they are now recording significant successes in the south — the region lying between Damascus and the Israeli and Jordanian borders,” the report, titled “The Battle For Southern Syria Heating Up,” said.

Author Ehud Yaari, a leading Israeli analyst, said the Syrian Army as well as regime militias were on the defensive throughout the south. He said the Army’s Brigades 61 and 90 have sustained heavy losses and became “operationally ineffective.”

Brigade 61 was said to have been defeated by Islamist militias at the Army base of Tel Jabia near Nawa. The report said Brigade 90 lost control over much of the frontier with Israel, including Tel Ahmar and Tel Kudna. The Syrian Army was said to be hampered by a manpower shortage and declining
morale.

Along the Jordanian border, the report said, rebels have captured the
southern part of the Syrian city of Dera. The rebels, equipped with
U.S.-origin anti-tank missiles, were said to have been directed by an
operations command led by Col. Ziad Hariri.

“The few TOW [anti-tank] missiles employed so far have already proved
efficient in destroying Syrian Army tanks and deterring the regime from
sending tanks to roll back rebel gains,” the report, dated May 14, said.

The southern rebels were said to consist of Al Qaida’s Nusra Front for
the Defense of the Levant as well as local militias. The report said the
rebels were deploying up to 500 men to attack positions of the
regime of President Bashar Assad.

Yaari said the southern front could be used for a rebel assault on
Damascus, up to 100 kilometers away. He said the rebels were calling on
their colleagues in the north for reinforcements for a two-pronged attack on
the Syrian capital from Dera and Quneitra, the capital of the Golan
Heights. So far, the rebels have refrained from attacking Israel, which
offered medical treatment to the Syrians.

“If the rebels mobilize enough forces in the south, instead of their
traditional concentration on the northern fronts, they may perhaps be able
to change the course of the battle for Damascus,” the report said. “For that
to happen, though, they will need to redeploy additional forces to this
region. So far, this has not happened.”

  Col. Ziad Hariri, Dera, Quneitra, Report: U.S.-trained rebels make gains in southern Syria, Washington Institute for Near East Policy