The Syrian army and its allies were fighting on Saturday (September 2) in Islamic State’s last pocket in central Syria after taking the heavily defended village of Uqairabat, in the province of Hama, on Friday (September 1), a war monitor reported.

The Syrian army released footage showing Russian helicopters and artillery tanks firing at Islamic State targets on Friday in the eastern outskirts of al-Salamiya, near the village of Uqairabat.

The enclave has been the site of intense fighting for months. Evicting jihadists from the area is viewed as necessary to improve security on the main road running between the cities of Homs and Aleppo.

Late on Friday, a military media unit run by Lebanon’s Hezbollah said the army had captured Uqairabat, which it described as Islamic State’s stronghold in that region.

The war monitor, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the army and its allies had also taken other villages in the area, aided by Russian helicopters, and reported that intense fighting continued.