(VOVworld) – The Syrian army has recaptured several towns from the Islamic State (IS), following intense battles in the central part of the country. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Monday that Syrian forces had liberated the strategic Maheen and Hawareen towns in the south-eastern area of central Homs Province. The government forces also retook Sada, a predominantly Christian town in the eastern suburbs of Homs. The Syrian forces' next plan will be to recapture the city of Qaryatayn, which was seized by IS in early August.

Syrian army tanks enter a village near the Kweyris military air base, in the east of the northern Syrian province of Aleppo, on November 15, 2015. (AFP photo)