Syrian rebels claim to reach key city of Homs, extending rapid offensive against Assad

Damascus [Syria], December 7: Syrian rebel forces said on Friday their lightning advance reached the central city of Homs, which could position the insurgents to topple another town strategic to President Bashar al-Assad's grip on power.
"Our forces have liberated the last village on the outskirts of the city of Homs and are now on its walls," the Syrian faction leading the sweeping assault said on Telegram."
The Islamist group, a former Al-Qaeda affiliate now known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), made a last call on forces loyal to Assad's government in Homs to defect.
Rebel sources also said early on Saturday they had seized the southern city of Daraa, near Jordan, after reaching a deal to give army officials safe passage to the capital Damascus for the army's orderly withdrawal.
Reuters could not independently confirm the rebels' claims.
If the Sunni Muslim rebels capture Homs, they would cut off Damascus from the coast, a stronghold of Assad's minority Alawite sect and where his Russian allies have a naval base and air base.
A Syrian army source said any rebel push from the north of Homs would face Iran-backed Hezbollah forces who were positioned to bolster government defences.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, said thousands of people had begun fleeing from Homs on
Thursday night towards the Mediterranean coastal regions of Latakia and Tartus, strongholds of the government.
A coastal resident said thousands of people had begun arriving there from Homs, fearing the rebels' rapid advance.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation