Syrian government forces have
surrounded the rebel stronghold of Qusair and are storming it from several
directions, says Syrian state TV.
Fighting has gone on around the town, near the Lebanese border, for
weeks.
Opposition groups say militants from the Lebanese Hezbollah movement are
fighting alongside government forces.
Correspondents say Qusair has strategic value for both sides. If the
government retakes it, it would ensure access from the capital to the coast.
Russia, a key ally of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, has a small naval
maintenance facility at the Syrian deep-water port of Tartus.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-22586378