The militants of the Al-Nusra Front and other opposition troops which support terrorists, tried to get break into Hama. This city never had any military action. They were stopped 2 km away from Hama by the Syrian army with the support of the Russian Aerospace Forces. Militants of the Al-Nusra Front are being destroyed by heavy artillery. Their location gets spotted and they get fired on by howitzers.

Terrorists from the former Al-Qaeda affiliate took advantage of the current ceasefire in Syria. In Idlib, an assault force was assembled and the advance began. They were stopped after they took control of several residential areas close to Hama. In the evening, at dusk, the field is clearly visible. Many shells rained down, the militants gave their positions away with muzzle flashes. The artillery could even hit them without using indirect fire. The militants know that we fire from here. Right now a missile will come our way. Never mind, it's all good. It blew up somewhere else.

During the attack, the extremists took over Halfaya and almost surrounded the ancient Christian city, Mhardeh. If you didn't know where it was happening, you might think it's a big family preparing for a picnic in their own backyard. But most people here aren't related. The city is surrounded by terrorists. In this kitchen, they are preparing lunch for Christian soldiers on the front line. This is Rima, the wife of a commander of the local volunteers. Everybody in this city calls her Mother Rima. It's self-explanatory. We started cooking for our boys that are defending our city, because every civilian must do their part to stop evil. Those who can't fight can help behind the front lines. That's how we started to take care of our volunteers. For me, all the guys, holding back the terrorists, are like my own children. All of us in this city are one family.

This is the 7th time this Syrian city with an Aramaic name is under the threat of a blockade. But now is the most dangerous time, the residents say. Radical Islamists are all around Mhardeh — from north, east and south. The western road has been reinforced. The people here mobilized themselves. This is one of the most ancient Orthodox churches in Syria. Locals say it's the oldest in the world. The church was built on the site of an ancient structure. You can tell by these ancient columns. In the besieged city, the church became a civil defense center and a place to get humanitarian assistance. The residents of Mhardeh won't give up. Even teenagers are ready to fight for their homes and for their way of life. For different reasons, these men cannot be on the front lines. But they have their own war.

Volunteers have put together a rescue party. They remove debris after militants strike residential areas. They put out fires and give first aid to the injured. The war's been going on for 6 years. We know that if the terrorists come, we have no chance. They think we're infidels. They'll either make us our slaves or kill us. The important thing is we have things under control for now. This is the first line of defense, here we have firing positions and observers. In case of an attempt to break through into the city, radical Islamists will be greeted by the reserve forces. This is an observation post of one of the Christian units. Here the soldiers watch the terrorists 24/7. They watch the Al-Nusra Front groups that took over the neighboring villages. Militants use tanks, heavy artillery and antiaircraft mounts to fire at the defensive positions over here and at the residential areas of the city.

Just now, they noticed a militants' tank, just a couple of km from the city. The barrel is pointed directly at the troops' location. Get down. Get down. This is Samir. Before the war, he had his own tire shop. But now he is a guardsman. He is celebrating his 52nd birthday on the front line. Samir, won't your wife get mad that you're not celebrating at home? No, she's just happy that I don't complain. Besides, this is coffee, if I were home, it'd be arrack. Five years ago, all these people wouldn't believe that they'd have to defend their homes, guns in hands. But now, to them, it seems like their peaceful life never even existed. Ever.



That was an excerpt from a documentary by Evgeny Poddubny. The full version will be on Monday, in "Special Correspondent with Andrey Medvedev" at 11:45 PM. Another disturbing message from Syria by a reporter from Rio News. The largest dam in Syria, by Al-Thawrah, has been partly destroyed. It could be due to artillery fire or due to an airstrike. That's where Americans are supporting the Kurds, who are storming Al-Tharwah (Tabqa). Either way, the hydroelectric power plant on the dam is temporarily not working. A complex work of engineering, this hydro-structure on the Euphrates was built in the 70's with the help of the USSR. It was a monumental construction project.

As a result, Syria got a hydroelectric power plant and the largest reservoir in the country. Right now there's a chance that fanatic terrorists have placed explosives in the dam. Just in case of an assault. They don't care. To destroy is easier than to create.