The Russian Defense Ministry has announced that the units of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebels had joined the government forces in 11 settlements in the south of the country in order to fight al-Nusra Front* and Daesh** militants.
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According to the Russian military, 10 populated areas in Syria's south have voluntarily come under the control of the government over the past 24 hours.
The Syrian army is currently conducting an anti-terrorist operation in the southern de-escalation zone in parts of the country's Daraa and Quneitra provinces. The day before, the government forces, together with FSA detachments, managed to repel over a thousand al-Nusra Front attacks in the area.
Four Syrian de-escalation zones were created during the Astana talks on Syrian reconciliation, including the one in the country's south. Russia, Iran and Turkey serve as guarantors of the de-escalation agreements, which do not apply to terrorists in the region.
* al-Nusra Front, Daesh (ISIS/ISIL/IS/Islamic State) — are terrorist organizations banned in Russia.