It has been a rough morning for the Syrian Al-Qaeda group “Jabhat Al-Nusra” and their allies from the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham, as the Syrian Arab Army’s rapid advance across the country has left them on the defensive for the first time since January of this year.

Further adding to their plight in northern Syria, Jabhat Al-Nusra and their allies are under attack by the Russian Air Force’s powerful airstrikes; this aerial campaign against them has given them little room to breathe, as they struggle to maintain control over several areas around the country.

On Saturday morning, the Russian Air Force woke-up the sleeping Islamist rebels from Jabhat Al-Nusra at the strategic city of Salma in Jabal Al-Akrad (Kurdish Mountains), striking their positions with remarkable precision from their MI-24 Hind Helicopter Gunships in the Latakia Governorate’s northeastern countryside.

Following the Russian Air Force’s airstrikes, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) – in coordination with the National Defense Forces (NDF), the Syrian Social Nationalist Party (SSNP), and Muqawama Souri (Syrian Resistance) – continued their advance inside the rebel stronghold of Salma, killing over 15 enemy combatants before progressing deeper into the southern district.

Currently, the Islamist rebels are in a bad position at Salma after their multiple failed attacks on Kafr Dulbeh and Doreen earlier in the week; this failure has furthered the Syrian Army’s resolve to capture this integral city in northeastern Latakia.