One of the towns had received US-made weapons
Al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate Al Nusra Front seized three villages from rebels, including a US-backed group, in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, a monitor said on Friday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Al Nusra had taken control of Sufuhun, Al Fateera and Hizareen in Idlib, where the militant group has been battling other rebels.
The advances were the latest by Al Nusra against moderate and Islamist rebels in the province after clashes that began a week ago.
The Observatory said the three villages had been under the control of various rebel groups including the Hazm movement, which has received US-made weapons.
Last week, Al Nusra seized the town of Khan Al Subul from Hazm and the Idlib bastion of another Western-backed rebel grouping, the Syria Revolutionaries Front.
It remains unclear whether Al Nusra has seized the US-made TOW anti-tank missiles received by Hazm.
Syrian moderate and Islamist rebels have in the past allied with Al Nusra in battles against both the Syrian regime and the militant Daesh.
But since July, sporadic clashes have erupted between the Al Qaida affiliate and other rebel groups, particularly in Idlib.
The fighting began shortly after Al Nusra’s chief announced the group’s intention to establish an Islamic “emirate,” intended to rival the “caliphate” established by the Daesh.