The regime forces go deep into Deir Ezzor province regaining about 2900 km of its western countryside and become about 27 km away of the south of the city
Deir Ezzor Province – The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: The Western desert of Deir Ezzor is witnessing intensive shelling by the regime forces supported by gunmen loyal to them of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities and by the Russian warplanes as well as regime’s warplanes in preparation for the ground forces to achieve more advancement and penetrate deeply into the province where most of it is controlled by the “Islamic State” organization, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights observed that the regime forces managed to take control of about 2900 square kilometers, since the 27th of July 2017, the date of regime forces’ entry for the first time into the western administrative border of Deir Ezzor province, until the 31st of August 2017, while Jabal Bashri enabled the regime forces to achieve observing and strategic firearm control over large areas in its vicinity, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also learned that the regime forces which managed on the 27th of August 2017 to advance on Al-Sukhnah – Deir Ezzor Road, managed to reduce the distance between them and the city and to reach a distance of about 27 km from the southern entrance Deir Ezzor city
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published hours ago that the regime forces supported by their loyal gunmen of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities, have managed to achieve a strategic advancement and controlled the largest mountains of the Syrian Desert, where these forces took control of al-Bashri Mountain in the triangle of Al-Raqqah – Deir Ezzor – Homs, which is characterized by its rugged terrain, and is one of the most important strongholds of the “Islamic State” organization in Syria, this mountain witnessed the visits of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi -the leader of the “Islamic State” organization- to meet with military and security commanders of the organization in earlier times. The mountain extends through the administrative borders of 3 provinces and is one of the important positions on which the organization has been depending in the supply operations and for securing its commanders.
This advancement enabled the regime forces to control about 3000 square kilometers of the Syrian Desert, enabling them to go deep and achieve a big advancement in the western Desert of Deir Ezzor, also the control of the Mountain and putting firepower in the mountain will ensure the monitor and firearm control of vast areas of villages and towns of the western countryside to Deir Ezzor, where the regime forces were able to achieve this control in the area by advancing under a cover of intense missile and artillery shelling by the regime forces, and by the bombardment by the Russian warplanes and regime’s warplanes on al-Bashri Mountain and its surroundings, also the by this advancement the regime forces were able to unify both of the previous advancement points in Deir Ezzor, which are the point of advancement of the eastern countryside of area Al-Raqqah, and point of advancement of the road of al-Sukhnah – Deir Ezzor.
It is worth mentioning that the regime forces managed on the 17th of July 2017 to achieve an important advancement taking control of oil fields in the eastern half of the southern countryside of Al-Raqqah. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that this important advancement allowed the regime forces to reach the outskirts of the strategic mountain of Al-Bashri, also the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 27th of August 2017 that the regime forces managed to advance into an area of about 25 kilometers, northeast of ISIS’ positions, about 36 kilometers away from Al-Sukhnah city in the eastern desert of Homs. Such advancement came as part of the regime’s incursion operations into the administrative borders of Deir Ezzor Province, in preparation for the recovery of areas controlled by ISIS there. ISIS currently controls most of the Province except for some areas controlled by the regime forces in the city and in its vicinity, and other areas into which the regime forces moved deeper from the side of T2 station, Al-Sukhnah city and the eastern countryside of Al-Raqqah, along with areas in the northwest countryside of Al-Raqqah city, which are controlled by the SDF. Thus, the regime forces are, from that point that leads to Kabajeb and Al-Shola, about 65 km away from the city of Deir Ezzor. The regime-controlled areas in the city of Deir Ezzor have been besieged by the organization since the beginning of 2015, and the organization managed to impose another siege inside the first one at the beginning of 2017.
The SOHR published on the 27th of July 2017 that the regime forces were able to enter the western administrative border of Deir Ezzor province, which is the first time the regime forces enter Deir Ezzor province from Al-Raqqah province; after about two months from entering the southeastern countryside of the province coming from the far east of Homs Desert. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Published on the 23rd of June 2017 that learned that al-Nujabaa Movement and militiamen loyal to the regime after they managed to control the areas of al-Wa’er dam, al-Wa’er valley and Ard al-Washwash and several other positions within the areas controlled by the “Islamic State” organization, they have managed to enter the administrative border of Deir Ezzor province from its southeastern countryside near the Iraqi border, where this strategic progress allows the regime forces to expand their controlled areas on the Syrian-Iraqi border.