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On December 25, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) reportedly achieved another strategic victory in the countryside of Damascus.
According to pro-government sources, units of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda) and other armed groups operating in the Beit Jinn pocket accepted a withdrawal agreement and declared their readiness to surrender their positions to the SAA.
Negotiations between the local militants and the SAA started in the pocket last week after government forces had cut off the road between Beit Jinn and Maghar al-Mir and entered the village of Maghar al-Mir itself.
If the surrender of militants in the Beit Jinn pocket is confirmed, the Syrian military will eliminate one of the few remaining militant-held pockets in the Damascus countryside and secure this important area near the Golan Heights.
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