Syrian troops clash with gunmen near Golan Heights, Lebanon border

BEIRUT – Activists and state media say Syrian troops are battling rebels near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights and the Lebanon border.

State news agency SANA says government forces have killed "a number of terrorists and wounded many others" in the southwestern village of Beit Jin.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Friday that the fighting left 26 pro-government forces and 14 rebels dead the day before.

The area near Mount Hermon along the disputed borders between the three countries has seen weeks of heavy clashes as rebels and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front have pressed an offensive.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said Lebanese troops prevented Syrians from bringing in 11 wounded people from the Beit Jin area.