March 12, 2019 - 10:29 AMT
Rebel sleeper cells "emerge across southern and western Syria"

Rebel sleeper cells have emerged across both southern and western Syria, despite the fact that the Syrian military has declared many of the areas safe to return to, Al-Masdar News says.

Most recently, the Syrian military reported a powerful explosion inside the rural Daraa town of Tafas after an IED was detonated under a motor vehicle.

According to the Syrian military, the IED attack targeted the home of the reconciled Free Syrian Army (FSA) commander Abu Murshid Badran.

In addition to the attack, the rebel sleeper cells targeted two other sites inside the northern region of the Homs Governorate.

The first of the attacks occurred on March 8th when a group of rebels opened fire on a Syrian Arab Army checkpoint in the town of Al-Rastan.

The following night, the second attack would occur when a rebel fighter threw a grenade at a military checkpoint inside the same town.

The rebel fighters managed to escape capture by the Syrian Arab Army; however, it has also forced the latter to beef up their security in several parts of the country.