Regime forces backed by Hezbollah captured Rankous in Qalamoun near the Lebanese border, cutting off rebel supply lines and solidifying the regime’s hold in the area. The Al Nusrah Front, Islamic fighters, and rebels reportedly left Rankous after its inhabitants made a truce with the regime two days earlier. Two car bombs detonated in Alawite neighborhoods in the city of Homs, killing at least 25 people and injuring over 100. Islamic Front fighters clashed with regime forces in Latakia. The Al Nusrah Front and Islamic fighters battled regime forces in Aleppo, where they were joined by the al Muhajireen army, the al Ansar battalion, and rebels; and in Reef Dimashq in the Rankous area. Members of Al Nusrah’s sharia council in Kafranbel, Idlib allegedly tortured and whipped a man. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Sham eulogized a Moroccan commander killed by Al Nusrah.
