Assad's army launches assault on Mleiha, 10km from Damascus

Syrian government forces appeared to prepare for a major assault on the heavily contested town of al-Mleiha, 10 kilometers East of Damascus, on Thursday morning, with pro-Assad news site Damascus Al-Aan reporting that the Syrian army had shelled more than 200 targets in the town while “preparing to liberate it from armed groups.”

 Meanwhile, opposition sources reporting that government warplanes had launched four air raids Thursday morning and 22 on Wednesday targeting the town roughly 10 kilometers east of Damascus.

The Islamic Union for Soldiers of the Levant, a rebel group, claimed on its official site that opposition forces had managed to repel the government campaign, destroying a regime tank and killing at least 13 pro-Assad fighters.

Al-Mleiha, which lies between the Syrian capital and rebel-held areas of outer Damascus, has been the site of heavy fighting for nearly 18 months, with rebels gains over the past week eliciting a regime counteroffensive. By Syria Direct