15 days after of the most violent attack and the killing of about 400 persons… the regime forces and their supportive Russian warplanes fail to retrieve what was controlled by the “Islamic State” organization
The relative calmness returned to prevail Deir Ezzor city during the past hours in terms of clashes, after the violent clashes that topped the situation in the city and its vicinity, between the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them against the “Islamic State” organization, the clashes were distributed in areas within the city of Deir Ezzor, the vicinity of its airbase, the area around the Brigade 137 and the cemeteries, associated with intense airstrikes, and exchange of artillery and rocket shelling between both parties.
The violent clashes which was monitored by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights during the past 15 days, came after preparations and military preparations accompanied trooping which was started by the “Islamic State” organization since the beginning of 2017, the organization brought in reinforcements, ammunition, fighters and booby trapped vehicles, in addition to the tires and fuel to the city, they distributed them in the empty squares of the city, in order to set them on fire which will then make smoke that helps confusing warplanes.
And with the “Islamic State” organization’s advancement within the most violent attack since January 2016, during of which the organization controlled large parts of al-Bogeleyyah area at the northwest of Deir Ezzor city, and killed and executed nearly 150 members of the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them and of families of NDF and national army members and members of the Baath Party from the city, in addition to kidnapping more than 400 people from the neighborhood and from northwest of Deir Ezzor, they were civilians and families of the gunmen loyal to the regime, in addition to that the organization was able through its offensive in 2017 to achieve a strategic goal, which is controlling the mountain overlooking Deir Ezzor and the area which was controlled by the “Islamic State” organization, and being able to split the city into two halves and besiege the regime forces in Deir Ezzor airbase and besiege neighborhoods of Deir Ezzor city within the first siege which entered its 3rd year, in addition to controlling and advancing in several locations within Deir Ezzor city and around it.
the regime forces supported by gunmen loyal to them and by intensive cover of artillery and missile shelling, as well as hundreds of intensive raids by Russian warplanes and by the warplanes of the regime of Bashar al-Assad, in spite of all counter-attacks by the regime forces and their disparate attempts, they not yet been able to achieve any significant advancement or restore sites they lost to the “Islamic State” organization, and the regime forces had failed in their repeated attempts to break the besiege of splitting the city in 2 halves, after controlling the overlooking mountain by the “Islamic State” organization.
Also the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented the death of 381 people of the civilians, fighters and members of the organization “Islamic State, they are 87 civilians at least including 19 children and 18 citizen women, also 49 persons were killed including 9 children and 12 citizen woman, they were killed in bombing by warplanes on the city of Deir Ezzor and the towns of Muhassan and Al-Boleel in the countryside, and 38 including 10 children and six citizen women were killed in shelling by the “Islamic State” organization on areas controlled by the regime forces in Deir Ezzor city, also it rose to 104 the number of killed members and officers of the regime forces and militiamen loyal to them, while it rose to 190, the number of members of the “Islamic State” organization of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities, including several field commanders and the Real-Estate Official in “al-Khayr State”, also tens of persons of both parties were injured.