The Syrian army and Hezbollah fighters captured a mountainous area on Syria's border with Lebanon on Thursday and killed dozens of insurgents including from al Qaeda's Nusra Front wing, a Hezbollah official told Reuters.

The area, Assal al-Ward, is a strategic position that overlooks Lebanese border towns where Hezbollah has heavy presence. Fighters from the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon have fought alongside Syrian army forces in Syria's civil war.