ISIS seized Qaryatain, a central Syrian town, on Thursday after clashing with President Bashar al-Assad's forces, reported Yahoo! News. The capture comes after a string of military setbacks suffered by ISIS since its capture of Palmyra .
Qaryatain is located southwest of Palmyra, home of the famous towering Roman ruins, and approximately 85 kilometers away from Homs city. With the city under control, ISIS can now connect areas currently under its power around Palmyra with areas located in the eastern countryside of Qalamoun, which is located in Damascus province.
Qaryatain is composed of a approximately 40,000 Sunni Muslims and Christians, and also contains thousands of displaced people who had to flee from Homs.
The battle began after three suicide bombers attacked army checkpoints at its entrance on Wednesday, reported Fox News.
Since the civil war began after anti-government protests in March 2011, more than 230,000 Syrians have died. In addition, the rebel groups that were initially fighting al-Asaad's forces have recently turned against each other in an increasingly brutal manner.
In a separate attack, the United States launched its first drone strike against ISIS from Turkey, reported BBC News. No further details have been given by the Pentagon regarding the attack, which was launched on Monday.
