Syrian Army ‘Ready’ for Southwestern Offensive

Syrian army commanders say that they have completed all preparations for their planned offensive against rebels in southwestern Syria. They did not indicate when the offensive would start exactly, but suggested it was imminent.

With Syria’s military now having complete control of the metro Damascus area, as well as the Lebanese border, the southwest, including parts of the border with Jordan, look to be the next focus. Rebels in Daraa, seemingly in the heart of that area, aren’t seeing it, however.

Daraa rebels say that while they’ve prepared defenses for a likely attack, they’ve seen no signs of any military mobilization in the area around them. They accused Syria of making the offensive up as “psychological warfare.”

While other offensives have seen Syria making use of a lot of paramilitary allies, that’s unlikely to be the case in the south, with Russia over the weekend having reportedly gotten an assurance from Israel that they won’t intervene so long as no Shi’ite militias or Iranians take part in the offensive.