Former rebel militiamen who have switched sides and joined Syria's regime forces are engaged in a fierce battle against Islamist insurgents near Damascus, sources said on Sunday.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, pro-regime Jaysh al-Wafaa launched its "fiercest battle yet" on Saturday night against Jaysh al-Islam fighters near the rebel bastion of Douma, east of the capital.
"The fighting is ongoing now," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told Agence France-Presse on Sunday.
Jaysh al-Wafaa, whose name in Arabic roughly translates as "The Loyalists' Army", was formed some three months ago, more than a year into a suffocating regime siege of the Eastern Ghouta area, which includes Douma.
The militia's task is to confront Jaysh al-Islam, the best-armed opposition group in the Damascus area, according to the Observatory and activists in Douma.