The al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliated militant group in Syria, attacked the government-held city of Idlib Monday and briefly seized a number of state buildings, the BBC reported.
Government forces blocked the offensive, pushing back the rebels, who claimed had killed dozens of regime soldiers.
Syrian government forces have maintained control of Idlib since the north-western city was briefly taken by rebel groups in 2012.
The Nusra Front launched its offensive on the town from all sides, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a London-based group monitoring the conflict in Syria, said.