Syrian troops evacuate military positions in northwestern town: state TV

The Syrian government forces evacuated some military points in a northwestern contested town Saturday, the official Syrian TV reported, as activists said the evacuation came after the jihadist groups fully captured the town.

"A unit of the Syrian army evacuated some military positions in the vicinity of the town of Mhambel in the countryside of Idlib province and repositioned in new positions more adequate to carry out fighting missions in that area," the Syrian TV said.

Meanwhile, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based watchdog group, said the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and affiliated militants fully captured Mhambel, located on the road connecting the town of Ariha in Idlib countryside with the coastal city of Latakia, the hometown of President Bashar al-Assad.

The Observatory, which relies on a network of activists on ground, said the Syrian forces withdrew toward the towns of Frikeh in the countryside of Jisr al-Shughour city in Idlib and the al-Ghab Plains in the central province of Hama.

Jihadist group, mainly the Nusra Front, captured much of Idlib province near the Turkish borders over the past two months.

The extremist militants are apparently ramping up their assaults to strip the government forces of the few remaining positions in Idlib. Endit