Fighting Resumes Near Damascus After 54-Hour Ceasefire

A military Source told Sputnik that the militants from the Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham had resumed fighting in the town northwest of Damascus.

BEIRUT (Sputnik) — The militants from the Syrian Islamist groups, the Nusra Front and Ahrar al-Sham resumed fighting in the town of Zabadani northwest of Damascus following a 54-hour ceasefire, a military Source told Sputnik on Saturday.

"The Syrian army resumed military operations in the town of Zabadani after 54-hour ceasefire. The ceasefire…. was violated by the fighting started by the insurgent groups," the source said.

At least two people were killed and 12 injured in the new round of shelling, according to the source.

On Wednesday, a ceasefire was declared to halt fighting between the Syrian insurgents and the army in the town of Zabadani near the Lebanese border.

Earlier in the day, an Ahrar al-Sham’s spokesman was quoted by the media as saying that a ceasefire was over, and an alliance of rebel groups was preparing to escalate military operations in the area.

Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with government forces fighting anti-government rebels and radical Islamists, including the notorious Islamic State (ISIL) militant group.

The Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate, alongside a number of Syrian Islamist groups, such as the powerful Ahrar al-Sham, form an insurgent alliance in the country. They are fighting both the ISIL and the Syrian government forces.