Syrian army and Hezbollah resistance fighters launched a wide-scale offensive on Saturday on several fronts in the southern Qalamoun city of Zabadani, where militants are holed up, amid artillery and aerial cover

Syrian army and Hezbollah resistance fighters launched a wide-scale offensive on Saturday on several fronts in the southern Qalamoun city of Zabadani, where militants are holed up, amid artillery and aerial cover.

The forces blocked the main road north of Zabadani to isolate the area from the Qalamoun towns of Serghaya and Ain Hor, Al-Manar correspondent reported.

The operation came after all efforts of reconciliation resulted in failure and after hundreds of militants fleeing from some Al-Qalamoun barrens infilitrated to the city.

Al-Manar correspondent said ground forces pushed into Zabadani around dawn, accompanied by intense air raids and shelling. "They took control over a neighboring position identified as Qalaat al-Tal or Qalaat al-Koko, located west of Zabadani," he added.

Syria’s state-run news agency SANA Saturday also reported the “wide military operation” in Zabadani, saying "the allied forces are pushing toward their targets on several fronts," noting that the offensive had inflicted heavy casualties on the rebels.