Syrian regime reaches last IS-held town in Homs province

Syrian regime forces reached the outskirts of the Islamic State group's last town in the country's central province of Homs, according to a Hizballah military unit.

The majority of IS militants based in al-Sukhna, which is located on the main desert highway connecting Palmyra and Deir az-Zour, had recently fled the town, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

The pro-regime military unit had previously reported that the town's gas fields and heights were within range of army fire.

Syria's army and its supporters, including Hizballah fighters and other Shia militants, are currently advancing through Syria's eastern desert for an assault on the IS group's in the country.

Elsewhere, pro-regime forces are waging an offensive further north, where Russian military jets are backing a ground assault along the southern bank of the Euphrates.

US-backed Syrian rebels are also racing to seize the militants' Syrian stronghold of Raqqa, after having already taken swathes of their territory north of the Euphrates.