The military chief of the main umbrella group of Syrian rebels says his men should be allowed to fight Hezbollah militants inside neighbouring Lebanon, BBC News reported.

Gen Selim Idriss of the Free Syrian Army said that Hezbollah fighters were "invading" Syria and Lebanon was doing nothing to stop them.

Gen Idriss denied rebels were losing the war, despite recent setbacks.

Early on Wednesday Syrian state TV claimed that government forces had gained full control of Qusair.

There was no way of immediately verifying the report.

Gen Idriss also said they would not accept any role for President Bashar al-Assad in a post-conflict Syria.

"If the price of peace is that Bashar still has the power in Syria, we don't need that kind of peace," he said.

He said he had told commanders, including those near the strategic town of Qusair, to fight Hezbollah militants "just inside Syria".

But he added: "There are now a very large number of Hezbollah fighters in Syria, in Qusair, in Idlib, in Aleppo, in Damascus and I can say everywhere in the country.