ANKARA
Syria’s Bashar al-Assad regime is gradually losing border crossings across the country and as of now only the ones along the Lebanese border that it controls are said to be open to traffic both ways, sources tell The Anadolu Agency.
Most of the other border crossings in Syria along Turkey, Iraq, Jordan and occupied Golan Heights are either closed or under control of militant groups such as the Free Syrian Army, Daesh, Al Nusra Front and Kurdish fighters.
In Jordan, the Al Nusra Front-led Syrian fighters seized control of Nasib -- Jaber border crossing Wednesday after clashes with Assad regime forces. On the Syrian side, this crossing is located in the Deraa province. Also in Jordan, the Deraa border crossing, also known as Ramtha, is said to be under control of the Al Nusra Front and opposition forces since October 2013.
In Iraq, the Albu Kamal-al Qaem crossing is said to be in control of Daesh since it captured the Albu Kamal town in November 2012. It is located in eastern Deir el-Zour province on the Syrian side. Also, the Yarbia -- Rabea crossing, located in the northeastern al-Hasakah province on the Syrian side, is now said to be under control of the Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces and Syrian Kurdish armed factions since October 2014.
Iraq's Al-Tanaf/Al-Walid is the only crossing border along the border in Iraq that is said to be under control of the Assad regime. However, there is no movement along this crossing because Daesh controls the Iraqi side of the crossing.
Turkey shares an estimated 900 kilometers long border with Syria, which has a total of around 13 border crossings. Some crossings that are under Assad regime’s control on the Syrian side have been shut down by Turkey; these include the Kasb crossing in the northwestern province of Latakia, the al-Qamishli crossing in al-Hasakah province in northern Syria, the Tal Abyad in Raqqa province and the Garables in Aleppo province.
Crossings where the Syrian opposition groups hold sway on the Syrian side, such as the Bab al-Salama border crossing in Aleppo province and Bab al-Hawa in Idlib province, remain open. The Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party is said to be in control of the Tal Sheir crossing located in Syrian town of Kobani and the Raas al-Ayn border crossing in Syria’s al-Hasakah province.
Along the occupied Golan Heights, the Al-Quneitra border crossing is said to be under control of the Al Nusra Front and other opposition groups, including The Free Syrian Army, since August 2014 on the Syrian side. Israel has occupied two-thirds of the Golan Heights since 1967.
In Lebanon, the Al-Oreida and Jadidat Yabous border crossings have been under Assad regime’s control. Other smaller border crossings along the Lebanese border, including al-Dabbousiya, Josiya, al-Aboudiya, Jesr al-Qmar are also said to be under regime control.
