1st LD: Syria army recaptures key neighborhood east of Damascus

Syrian army on Saturday captured the eastern Qaboun neighborhood of the capital Damascus after losing it to the rebels in 2012, a military source told Xinhua.

The victory came four months after a military campaign by the Syrian army waged by the Syrian military forces, the source said on condition of anonymity.

Qaboun is extremely strategic for the Syrian army as it's located on the official international road connecting Damascus with the central province of Homs and other key provinces in northern Syria.

The neighborhood, also one of the entrances of the rebel-held Eastern Ghouta countryside of Damascus, has several big tunnels the rebels used to smuggle their weaponry and fighters to different parts of Ghouta.

Qaboun was also the launching pad of attacks on the capital Damascus, with the largest and most vicious one happening in March.

In 2014, a truce was reached in Qaboun but quickly fell apart.

The source said the rebels in Qaboun surrendered and will be evacuated to the northwestern province of Idlib and the city of Jarablus, both rebel-held areas in northern Syria.

The capture of Qaboun came a day after the rebels in the nearby neighborhoods of Barzeh and Tishreen evacuated.

With the three neighborhoods returning to the government, the remaining areas are part of the "de-escalation zones" deal, which means that there will be no further attacks on the capital from that area. Endit