ISIS restores parts of al-Susah town through its counterattacks east of Euphrates and the continuous clashes raise number of deaths of both parties to 340
Deir Ezzor Province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: the last enclave of the “Islamic State” Organization at the east bank of Euphrates River in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, is still witnessing violent clashes in several areas between members of the Organization of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities against the Syria Democratic Forces supported by the International Coalition, accompanied by continuous rocket shelling operations carried out by SDF in addition to the continued airstrikes by the International Coalition warplanes, after the weather conditions got better in the area during the past hours, where the air and missile strikes are targeting locations of the “Islamic State” Organization, which was able to regain control yesterday, Friday, parts of al-Susah town in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, while the violent clashes are now taking place in attempts by Syria Democratic Forces to keep the Organization away and expel it from all of al-Susah, while the Organization seeks to hold the control of its positions again inside the town and inflict more human casualties in the ranks of SDF, and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented more deaths and injuries in the ranks of both parties in the clashes that are accompanied by aerial and missile bombing and shelling, where it rose to 222 the number of casualties in the ranks of the “Islamic State” organization, while it rose to 120, the number of casualties in the ranks of the Syria Democratic Forces, all of them were killed since the start of the sandstorms on the 10th of October 2018, where the “Islamic State” organization took advantage of these sandstorms in carrying out violent and intense attacks until this day, in addition to causing a major kidnapping carried out by the Organization with the help of its cells inside a camp of displaced people in al-Bahra at the vicinity of the ISIS-controlled enclave east of Euphrates, where a situation of alert prevails the area amid attempts for strengthen places, military points, and contact lines with the Organization, to prevent it from carrying out counterattacks through its members in its last enclave east of Euphrates, or through sleeper cells operating in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, in addition to 15 people -including 10 members of SDF- were executed by the Organization during the same period, while the Syrian Observatory monitored during the military operations that started on the 10th of October 2018, violent clashes, the most violent of which were what the area witnessed in the last two weeks, as a result of the bad weather conditions and the sandstorm which was exploited by the “Islamic State” organization, where it carried out counter and violent attacks that killed members of both parties, and after which about 300 persons of 130 families were abducted, including at least 90 women of different nationalities, the majority of whom are nationalities of the former Soviet Union whose fate is still unknown, where the organization separated the women from the rest of the abductees, amid fears for their lives of executions that may be carried out individually or collectively by ISIS, and the abduction took place from al-Bahra camp, where the Syrian Observatory previously monitored the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition moving tens of people and families to al-Bahra camp, which consists of tens of tents in the countryside of Hajin town, where it was established by SDF and the Coalition with the purpose of sheltering displaced families in addition to families of members of the “Islamic State” organization.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published yesterday that the weather got better, along with the end of the sand storm in the east of the Euphrates, in conjunction with shelling by the International Coalition’s Forces on areas in the enclave which is controlled by the organization, on the eastern banks of the Euphrates River, while the violent clashes are still continuing between the Syria Democratic Forces supported by the International Coalition against the members of the “Islamic State” organization, on areas in the vicinity and outskirts of ISIS last Enclave in the area, amid exchange of targeting on the clash areas, while the Syrian Observatory monitored the passing of 3 vehicles carrying a number of wounded of the SDF who were injured during the clashes and targeting operations, and the SOHR published hours ago, that it monitored ongoing violent clashes between the Syria Democratic Forces supported by the International Coalition against the members of the “Islamic State” organization, in areas in the eastern sector of Deir Ezzor countryside, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored that the clashes are concentrated in the areas of Hajin and Al-Susah as well as the outskirts of Al-Baghuz and the vicinity of Al-Sha’afah, amid the organization’s ability to recover posts it lost, exploiting the deteriorating weather, while the SOHR monitored artillery shelling by the International Coalition, by several missiles which targeted the enclave controlled by the organization, amid information about the fall of more human losses caused by the shelling and clashes, while the Syrian Observatory published hours ago, that it monitored a heavy sandstorm in the Syrian desert and east of Euphrates, which blocked the vision completely and led to the absence of Coalition warplanes in the skies of the area, where the atmosphere began to bet better gradually with the start of missile and artillery shelling. The intersected sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory that this storm is the heaviest and worst storm the area has witnessed since the start of the operation by the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition; to control the last enclave of the Organization on the east banks of Euphrates River, on the 10th of September 2018, amid fear of new attack by the Islamic State Organization on positions of SDF, where the sandstorms and the bad weather conditions made the Syria Democratic Forces to retreat into al-Susah town and to position in point in which they can fortify themselves against the attacks of the “Islamic State” Organization, which aim the inflict the largest number of casualties in the ranks of SDF; and carry out capturing and kidnapping in an attempt to prevent and delay the advancement of the Coalition and SDF, who aim to end the presence of the Organization in the area.