One day after capturing the Al-Zabadani Plains in the western countryside of this resort-city, the Syrian Arab Army’s 63rd Brigade of the 4th Mechanized Division – in coordination with the National Defense Forces (NDF) and Hezbollah – imposed full control over the Barada-Zabadani Road after fierce clashes with the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra” on Wednesday morning.
Following the capture of the Barada-Zabadani Road, the Syrian Armed Forces and Hezbollah carried out another powerful assault along Jamal ‘Abdel-Nasser Street, killing 9 enemy combatants from Jabhat Al-Nusra and Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham before they were able to fight their way back to the Al-Zabadani Bus Station, which is on the outskirts of the city’s downtown.
The battle of Al-Zabadani has become a battle of survival for Jabhat Al-Nusra and their allies from the Free Syrian Army’s “Al-Zabadani Hawks Brigade
and Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham, as the Syrian Armed Forces and Hezbollah have relentlessly pounded this resort-city on the border of Lebanon with aerial bombardments, mortar shells, and repeated infantry attacks that have taken a toll on the Islamist rebels.