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QUNEITRA: The Syrian authorities celebrated Friday the resumption of this symbolic southern city near Israel's occupied Golan Heights, raising a flag and playing the national anthem to mark the victory over the armed groups who controlled it for more than four years.
A photo of President Bashar Assad was hoisted on a partially destroyed monument in central Quneitra, where his father had hoisted the Syrian flag after Israel withdrew more than forty years ago.
People from neighboring villages, who sang the anthem, danced and applauded the Syrian army and affiliated militias.
Quneitra was abandoned after Israel destroyed it in 1974 after the Middle East war, although Israel continued to occupy the adjacent Golan Heights, seized in 1967. A Ceasefire and disengagement agreement has been largely maintained along the lines of demarcation for four decades.
During the civil war in Syria, the groups captured the city and much of south-west Syria, forcing a peacekeeping force to evacuate.
Celebrations in Quneitra took place as Syrian soldiers finalized their deployment to restore their positions for the first time since 2014.
Soldiers also deployed at a crossing that connects Quneitra with the Golan. Even if the countries are at war, the families of the local Druze community divided by the demarcation line use the pbadage to exchange their visits. A field commander, expressing himself under the guise of anonymity in accordance with the regulations, stated that it was only a matter of time before the peacekeeping force of the UN is redeployed and civilians can use the crossing again.
With Syrian forces regaining control of the city and crossing, only a handful of villages in Quneitra province remain out of government control, said the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights , a surveillance group based in Britain. left the destruction in Quneitra as a reminder of the war with Israel.
The signs of the last conflict can also be seen. On the way to Quneitra, the reporters crossed a large sand barrier, apparently erected by the armed opposition to separate the areas they controlled. Just after, a new layer of earth filled what appeared to be a large trench dug by the insurgents for the fortification.
A village a few kilometers from Quneitra was also destroyed, apparently during recent fighting.
The south-west of Syria began on June 19th. Since then, pro-government forces have seized most of the areas in Daraa and Quneitra provinces along the Jordan-Golan border. They are now fighting the remains of Daesh, which continues to hold territories at the southern end of the region.
"I came to celebrate the victory," said Marwan Ahmed Abdullah, a 49-year-old Syrian whose four sons fought in the area. war, including the one who was killed. "We will sacrifice our souls for Syria.What matters is that peace and security return to Syria as before."
Mohammed Khaba, 50, said he was from the village from Khan Arnabah to celebrate the victory.
"It's a source of pride for all Syrians – it's proof that we are able to expurgate terrorism from all over the country," he said. The Syrian government considers all opposition fighters to be terrorists.
For Omar Ayoub, it was a long-awaited return to the country. The 40-year-old man had not been to Quneitra since 2012, when he was engulfed in civil war.
Dressed in the traditional costume of ethnic minority Circbadians, Ayoub said that he was "ecstatic" to return to the capital of his native hometown.
A native of the Golan Heights, Ayoub has lived in Damascus since his family was displaced by the war with Israel. He has returned several times to the region, which is home to Circbadians and the Druze minority community, until the rebels seize it
"I am delighted to raise the flag, and if God willing, by Quneitra we will find all lands, I am certain. "
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