Government forces, gunmen clash in Syria’s Daraa
DARAA, Syria (North Press) – A soldier of Syrian government forces was killed on Friday during clashes with local gunmen in a town of Daraa Governorate in southern Syria.
Local gunmen countered the government forces in the town of Jassem which led to the eruption of clashes between them for about an hour. The government forces retreated as a result, a local source said.
The source added that a soldier of the government forces was killed during the clashes. His body is still on the road between Jassem and Inkhil towns, north of Daraa.
The government forces, stationing in the outskirts of the town, fired two tank shells at the eastern side of Jassem. No reports of casualties, according to the source.
Military posts and checkpoints of the government forces in the outskirts of the town witness an alert amid residents’ fear of clashes’ renewal.
Since early in September, the Syrian government forces have sent huge military reinforcement to the town of Jassem. They tightened security and pressure on the residents, demanding the exit of the “strangers” from the town.
Since the government forces re-captured Daraa in 2018, the governorate has been living in a state of insecurity, with one or two daily assassinations targeting soldiers and officers of the government forces, not to mention the spread of thefts.
In 2021, Daraa Governorate went through an 80-day-seige. After that, a number of Daraa’s notables and government forces, with mediation of Russian officers, reached a ceasefire agreement on September 5, 2021, including handing over weapons and deploying governmental security posts in the towns of the governorate.