SYRIAN ARMY ADVANCES TOWARDS GAS FIELDS NEAR PALMYRA (MAPS, VIDEO)

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On April 7, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) captured the Camel track and the Al-Sukari quarries and the Palmyra farms south of the ancient city of Palmyra in the province of Homs. These advances allowed the SAA to deploy closer to the strategic Khafseh town and the nearby gas fields.

The SAA artillery also targeted ISIS positions and fortifications east of the Palmyra silos and the Arak gas field.

It’s expected that the SAA will continue its operations around Palmyra until it capture the gas field near Khafseh south of Palmyra, the Arak gas field east of the city, and the fields of Jazal, Maher and Al Shaere northwest of the city.

Last night, the T4 air base located near a front line with ISIS in the Homs desert was reportedly hit by the US Army with a single Tomahawk missile. The missile hit a maintenance facility within the air base. Most likely, this was one of the US missiles that didn’t hit the ash Shayrat military airfield near the city of Homs.

From its side, ISIS launched a limited attack early on April 7, targeting SAA points around the vilalge of Al Fruqlus minutes after the US missile strike on the nearby Al Shayrat air base. The ISIS advance was repelled by government forces, according to local sources.

6 Syrian soldiers lost their life due to the strike and about 6-8 fighter jets were destroyed (mostly old MiG-23), according to pro-government sources. The runway and many other facilities in the air base survived the strike.