DAMASCUS — Syrian government forces launched a counteroffensive in the northern countryside of Hama Province in central Syria, reclaiming key areas from rebel groups after days of intense clashes, state media and a war monitor reported on Sunday.

Units of the Syrian army reinforced their defensive lines overnight with additional firepower, personnel, and equipment, repelling attacks by terrorist organizations and preventing any breaches, the Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement. "Our armed forces managed to secure several areas after expelling the terrorists, most notably Qalaat al-Madiq and Maardas, killing dozens of them while the rest fled," the ministry said.

State-run Syrian television reported that approximately 1,000 militants from the militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, and affiliated groups were killed over the past three days during the army's operations.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, confirmed that government forces have dispatched significant reinforcements in recent hours.

Since the early hours of Sunday, warplanes have conducted a series of airstrikes targeting areas around Mork, Khan Sheikhoun, Kafr Nabl, Hazarin, and Tal Kokba in the northwestern province of Idlib and northern Hama areas recently seized by the HTS. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

According to the observatory, the intensive airstrikes have halted the advance of rebel factions in the Hama countryside.

The HTS and allied opposition factions on Saturday advanced in Hama and took control of numerous towns and villages in the northern part of the province.

The HTS seized the Aleppo International Airport on Saturday, according to the observatory.

In his first public comments since the offensive, released by the state news agency on Saturday evening, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Syria will continue to "defend its stability and territorial integrity against terrorists and their supporters".

Iran's top diplomat Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday he will leave Teheran for Damascus to deliver a message of support for Syria's government and armed forces, state media said.

The Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Saturday evening: "We confirm that units of our armed forces are stationed at their positions in the northern and eastern countryside of Hama province and are fully prepared to repel any potential terrorist attack."

Support extended

In phone talks with al-Assad on Saturday, President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani voiced support for Damascus.

The UAE president said the country "stands with the Syrian state and supports it in combating terrorism, extending its sovereignty, unifying its territories, and achieving stability," Syria's state news agency SANA reported.

Al-Sudani said "Syria's security and stability are closely linked to Iraq's national security," and play a crucial role in regional security and efforts to establish stability in the Middle East, said a statement issued by the Iraqi prime minister's media office.

In their phone call on Saturday, Araghchi and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, expressed "decisive" support for Syria's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the Arab state's government and army in their fight against "terrorist groups".

Russia's Defense Ministry said its air force had carried out strikes on Syrian rebels in support of the country's army, Russian news agencies reported.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty also expressed concerns over the escalation of tensions in a phone call with his Syrian counterpart, Bassam Sabbagh.

On Wednesday, a major rebel offensive rocked the western countryside of Aleppo, the first significant attack since 2016. The assault was carried out by a coalition of rebel groups, mainly the HTS, with the aim of penetrating government-held territories.

XINHUA-AGENCIES