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Hezbollah making gains against Syrian rebels near Israeli border

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Hezbollah has reportedly captured two strategic positions from the al-Nusra front close to the Israel-Syria border, as the terror group continues to support President Assad’s forces.

Hezbollah recently launched an offensive against al-Nusra, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda around the mountainous area straddling the Lebanon-Syria border. The move is a response to serious gains made during the last several weeks by opposition groups committed to Assad’s downfall, who recaptured the city of Idlib and threatened suburbs of the capital Damascus. Hezbollah-run al-Manar television reported yesterday that its fighters captured Quba’a and Naqar in the Quneitra province, which lies close to Lebanon and Israel.

Earlier this year, Hezbollah’s deep involvement in Syria was highlighted by an apparent Israeli air strike near the Syria-Israel border, which killed six Hezbollah operatives planning a cross-border attack. Among those killed were a high-profile district commander, Jihad Mughniyeh, the son of the late Hezbollah leader Imad Mughniyeh, who was assassinated in 2008 and was thought to have been behind numerous terror attacks abroad.

Hezbollah’s military commitment in Syria has raised fears of growing Iranian influence in the wider region. With the help of Iran, Hezbollah is thought to have amassed an arsenal of around 100,000 rockets since the 2006 Second Lebanon War. It is considered an Iranian proxy with de-facto control of southern Lebanon and growing Hezbollah control in Syria would be thought of as a boost to Tehran’s influence. Iranian-affiliated forces are already in control of much of Iraq.

Underscoring Iran’s close relations with Hezbollah, Major General Rahim Safavi, a military advisor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei said last week that, “the Zionists and the US are aware of the power of Iran and Hezbollah, and they know that over 80,000 [Iranian] missiles are ready to rain down on Tel Aviv and Haifa.”

Meanwhile, Israel Radio news reports that two wounded Syrians arrived for treatment last night at an Israeli hospital, which has already treated 176 casualties from the war in Syria.