Lieutenant General Hassan Abdul Ghani, a member of the opposition’s military operations department, announced on Telegram today that “the forces are now less than 20 kilometers from the southern gate of the capital Damascus.”
Abdul Ghani said on Telegram: “Our forces have entered the city of Al-Sanameyn, north of Daraa, and announced that they have liberated it. This means that we are less than 20 kilometers from the southern gate of the capital Damascus.”
The Operations Department also announced in a statement on Telegram “the liberation of Quneitra Province in southwestern Syria.”
Bashar Al-Assad was also advised to flee Syria after Sunni forces reached 20 kilometers from Damascus, the country’s capital.
Meanwhile, Syrian forces said they were retreating south to form a security cordon after reports emerged that they had lost control of much of Daraa province – the epicentre of the uprising against President Assad.
Syrian rebels have announced they have taken control of the city of Daraa and are advancing towards Homs.
In the neighbouring province of Sweida, the governor, police chief and corrections chief were reported to have left their offices as rebels seized several checkpoints.
The government statement came just hours after rebels in central Syria said they were on the outskirts of Homs, and President Bashar al-Assad’s forces had given them final orders to withdraw. The Islamist rebels have held Aleppo and Hama since launching their offensive less than two weeks ago.