The Syrian military has re-taken the eastern suburbs of Damascus from the rebel army, Reuters reports.

The resistance fighters, known officially as the “Free Syrian Army,” were merely five miles from the capital city of Damascus. After two days of fighting, Syrian tanks rolled in this morning, forcing the rebels to make “a tactical withdrawal,” in the words of an activist. However, a spokesman for the FSA says that despite the retreat, the army is “still operating close to Damascus.” Meanwhile, in the city itself, residents are telling news agencies that police and military units have assembled around main squares in the city. This would suggest that al-Assad & co. believe it’s possible, at the very least, that the FSA will reach the capital in the near future. Syria’s been hot for ten months now, but it might now be approaching red-hot.