Syrian Rebels Lose Critical Border Town Near Jordan - East Idaho News
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Syrian Rebels Lose Critical Border Town Near Jordan

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GETTY W 073112 SyrianRebels?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1347010941012Scott Peterson/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — Opposition forces in Syria suffered a major setback Thursday after government troops took over a border town that people had used to cross over to Jordan for refuge.

Rebels were unable to offer much resistance as a large squadron of Syrian soldiers backed by 20 tanks seized control of Tal Shehab.

Witnesses said that the Syrian army was relentless, raiding homes in search of rebels and taking residents into custody.

It’s believed that rebels had held Tal Shehab for months until they were overrun on Thursday.

According to the Jordanian government, at least 183,000 Syrians have fled to its country since President Bashar al-Assad ordered a crackdown on pro-democracy forces in March 2011.

The number of refugees entering Jordan from Syria has recently swelled to 1,000 daily as fighting has intensified.

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