Syrian opposition fighters have withdrawn from Kasab, a resort town located close to the Syrian-Turkish borders.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a statement on Sunday the Islamic Al-Nusra fighters pulled out of Kasab, but a small number of gunmen remained in it.
It confirmed that troops of the Syrian regime, backed by gunmen of the Lebanese Hezbollah party, seized control of locations around the border village of Al-Nabain and advanced toward Kasab.
The Syrian opposition took control of Kasab in fierce fighting against the government troops last March.
The Observatory reported fighting with artillery and automatic guns in several locations and villages in the mountains east of the large coastal city of Latakia.
In Al-Hasaka, northeast of Syria, 10 people died in a booby-trapped car blast. It also wounded 19 others and inflicted heavy damage