[28] On 5 July, it was reported that the rebels mined and fortified their positions inside the besieged city ahead of expected heavy street fighting.
[14] On the same day, the Syrian Army carried out a powerful assault on al-Nusra Front's positions in the village of Al-Zahra, next to Zabadani.
[2][34][35] On 14 July, government troops destroyed a 360-meter tunnel passing under the main highway linking Zabadani and the village of Madaya.
[36] During the day, the Army seized the Kahraba roundabout and al-Hakl al-Asfar Street, reinforcing its control of Zabadani's entrance.
[16][38] By 15 July, the Syrian Army and Hezbollah were advancing towards the center of Zabadani and had effectively encircled rebel forces in the town.
[44] The next day, government forces further advanced in the city after rebels withdrew from some areas due to heavy airstrikes and shelling.
[47][48] The next day, the Army reiterated their "surrender or die" ultimatum to the rebels, saying it was their final warning, as government forces reportedly captured the village of Al-Marawah, near Madaya.
[54] By 4 August, the rebels had lost more territory, and Syrian government sources announced that the final assault on Al-Zabadani was merely days away.
[55] On 5 August, reports surfaced that one of the rebel groups were, via an intermediary in the Lebanese Government, attempting to negotiate a secure withdrawal for their fighters in exchange for safe passage to 30,000 civilians trapped inside the towns of Al-Fou’aa and Kafraya.
[57] However, the next day it was reported that negotiations had failed and pro-government troops had made further advances into the city's core with fights now taking place inside the downtown area.
[61] On 8 August, the Syrian government forces announced they had breached the rebel's defense line and entered Zabadani's downtown area, capturing the central bus station.
[64][65] On 10 August, pro-Syrian government forces captured the Imam Ali Mosque, with the Hezbollah pressing on from the southern perimeter.
[77] On 20 August, the Syrian government forces resumed their operations and launched their final assault on Al-Zabadani, killing 22 rebel fighters.
[79] On 24 August, pro-government sources reported that the SAA and the Hezbollah had captured the Umar Al-Farouq Mosque and surrounding residential buildings after fierce firefights, killing over 15 combatants from Harakat Ahrar Al-Sham and Jabhat Al-Nusra.
On 31 August, Syrian government forces moved in on the adjacent rebel-held town of Madaya, reportedly capturing 25% of it, while continuing aerial bombardment of Al-Zabadani.
[87][88] On 2 September, Hezbollah and Syrian government forces had captured 70-75 % of al-Zabadani,[10] while pro-government sources claimed that they had pushed the rebels back into a 100 square-meter area in the center of the town.
[93] On 5 September, pro-government sources stated that government troops had captured the Al-Nabwa’ Neighborhood in the northeastern sector of Al-Zabadani's downtown area, while killing 15 rebel combatants.
On 24 September, more than 2 months after the siege began, the UN announced that an agreement between the warring parties had finally been reached after repeated mediation efforts.
Conversely, civilians (approximately 10,000 people) still remaining inside the rebel-besieged Shi'ite villages of Al-Fu'ah and Kafriya are to be evacuated.
The Hezbollah also set itself out to recapture the Lebanese border-district of Arsal, from where al-Nusra Front and ISIL have been receiving much of their reinforcements in the Qalamoun Mountains region.
[109] On 13 October, in light of the truce, 150–200 Hezbollah fighters, who had been battling the rebels inside Al-Zabadani, were transferred to Aleppo City, in preparation for a wide-scale offensive.