Syrian rebels said overnight into Sunday that they had begun entering Damascus as part of a rapidly moving offensive that has seen them take over some of Syria's largest cities across the country.
Two members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards confirmed to the New York Times that rebel forces had entered the capital, and added that Syrian army forces have begun retreating from the area.
Two rebel sources told Reuters that they encountered no military presence or preparations by the Syrian army as they entered the city. However, CNN reported that residents said they could hear the sound of intense clashes in one of the city's suburbs.
It marks the first time that opposition forces reached the outskirts of the Syrian capital since 2018, when Syrian troops recaptured the region adjacent to the capital following a years-long siege.
Rebel forces announced that they had seized full control over Homs earlier during the night. Dozens of Hezbollah Radwan fighters fled the city after a decision taken by the army that the city could no longer be defended, a Syrian army officer told Reuters.
Syrian army sources told Reuters that Israel struck a convoy of Hezbollah armored vehicles that were making their way out of Qusayr city near the Syria-Lebanon border as rebel forces took over the strategic city 21 miles south of Homs overnight into Sunday.
At least 150 armored vehicles carrying hundreds of Hezbollah fighters left the city, along a point on the route for arms transfers and fighters moving in and out of Syria, the sources said. Israel hit one of the convoys as it was departing, one source said.
The fall of Homs gives the insurgents control over Syria's strategic heartland and a key highway crossroads, severing Damascus from the coastal region that is the stronghold of Assad's Alawite sect and where his Russian allies have a naval base and air base.
Rebel fighters sit on a military vehicle in Homs countryside, after Syrian rebels pressed their lightning advance on Saturday.Credit: Mahmoud Hasano/Reuters
Rebel forces earlier reported that they have taken control of the city of Quneitra in the Syrian Golan near the Israeli border according to two rebels and a Syrian officer who confirmed their withdrawal to Reuters on Saturday.
The Israeli military reported on Saturday evening that its forces were helping to repel an attack by militants on a UN post in Syrian territory near the border between the two countries.
A giant portrait of Syrian president Bashar Assad sets on a building, as empty streets seen in Damascus, Syria, Saturday.Credit: Omar Sanadiki,AP
Thes developments come after a series of sweeping advancements by Syrian rebel forces led by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham who sought to capitalize on their swift takeovers of Aleppo in the north and Hama in west-central Syria by pressing onwards on Friday to Homs, another 40 kilometers (24 miles) south.
Later on Friday, U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds seized control of Deir el-Zor in eastern Syria, according to two security sources who spoke with Reuters.
As the rebel push continues across the country, fighting has crept closer to Israel's border with Syria in its northern Golan Heights region.
An image of Syrian President Bashar Assad, riddled with bullets, is seen on the facade of the provincial government office in the aftermath of the opposition's takeover of Hama, Syria, Friday.Credit: Omar Albam,AP
The IDF announced Saturday, in accordance with a security assessment of the situation, that it has decided to send additional reinforcements to Israel's northern Golan Heights for defense missions, near the Syrian border.
Friday morning, Haaretz reported that Israel is preparing for the possibility of a surprise raid from the Syrian border and that the IDF's Northern Command designated a new reserve unit in the Golan Heights to provide a quick response if needed, along with reinforced air defense capabilities.
President-elect Donald Trump said in response to developments in the area that the U.S. should not be involved in the conflict.
A Syrian opposition fighter poses at the Hama military airport, Syria, on Friday.Credit: Ghaith Alsayed/AP
"Syria is a mess, but is not our friend," he wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. "THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!" he added.
U.S Envoy Amos Hochstein said Saturday that "what's happening in Syria is creating a new weakness for Hezbollah because it makes it more difficult for Iran, which is pulling out of Syria it seems, to get weapons in."
Hochstein, however warned that Hezbollah is not eliminated and that even though "it may not be strong enough to attack Israel or support Assad, it's not eliminated."
Hochstein also said that the U.S. needs to "up its game supporting the Lebanese army and so does everyone else."