DAMASCUS - A military source said Wednesday the Syrian army is about to complete its mission in the southern city of Daraa, the heartland of weeks of protests, after achieving most of the objectives, official SANA news agency reported.

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The army hunted down "armed terrorist groups that were terrifying people, spreading panic, destruction and killing all over neighborhood," the source said, adding it captured tens of members of the "terrorist" groups and seized large quantities of sophisticated weapons and various kinds of ammunition, "which has contributed to restoring peace and tranquility for the city's residents."

A day earlier, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had told dignitaries from Daraa that the army's mission would end "very soon."

Syria has been gripped by nearly seven weeks of protests calling for reforms, which have left more than a hundred army personnel and security agents killed across the country. Syria blamed the violent acts on "extremist terrorist groups."