The Nusra front - a Syrian branch of al Qaeda claims it has taken control of a base next to the country's main north-south highway.

Until now, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad had managed to repel numerous attacks on the base, which has been surrounded by insurgents for two years.

Footage shows a rebel fighter speaking of the spoils of war as he stands in front of an armored vehicle.

The video, which can not be independently verified by Reuters, comes as the European Union backs a UN plan for peace in northern Syria.

EU foreign ministers threw their weight behind a U.N. plan for a truce in Aleppo on Monday.

The hope is to freeze the fighting in Aleppo in an effort to try to get humanitarian assistance into the city that is split between opposition fighters and government troops.

Here in Idlib province few signs of peace in a war that has raged for more than three years killing some 200,000 people.