At least 20 regime troops have been killed by the Islamic State near the ancient city of Palmyra, local reporter said Tuesday.
ISIS has stormed the regime bastion in Tallit al-Sawana northwest of Palmyra in the Syrian desert. 13 forces were killed and dozens wounded, according to the reporter.
Three more troops were killed when ISIS fired a rocket on their tank in al-Sawame' area.
Syria's vast deserts have become the main theater of war in recent weeks as rival forces race to capture ground from the jihadist group, which is slowly retreating on several fronts.
In Raqqa, the regime army has made a sudden advance against ISIS west of the de fact capital fro the radical group, a military media unit run by its ally Hezbollah said on Tuesday.
The area between Ithriya and Tabqa, west of Raqqa, is important for the army since it can be used to attack government-held towns and supply routes, Reuters reported.
According to the Hezbollah military media unit, the army has punched southwards to the Ithriya-Tabqa highway, a distance of about 20 miles (32 km) from its positions south of Maskaneh.
The road was used by Islamic State to attack positions along the government's main supply route to Aleppo near Ithriya, and, if fully captured, would help the army advance into the desert.
It captured the villages of Rajm Askar, Bir Inbaj, Zahar Um Baj, Jab Aziz, Jab al-Ghanem, Abu Sousa and Jab Abyad from the jihadist group, the media unit said
