60 members of the regime forces and ISIS were killed within hours in violent fighting, car bombs and heavy airstrikes in the eastern countryside of Hama

Hama province – The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights:: more bombings rocked the eastern countryside of Hama with the continued clashes between the regime forces backed by the Russian forces and their allied militiamen of Syrian and non-Syrian nationalities against members of ISIS and the SOHR learned that the explosions were caused by car bombs by ISIS, which allowed them to advance and retake control over two villages after they controlled the western part of Akirabat town, which is the main stronghold of ISIS in Hama province, of which 20 villages still under the control of ISIS, by an area of about tens of kilometers, while the warplanes carried out heavy airstrikes on areas controlled by ISIS in the eastern countryside of Hama and on the clash areas  between both parties.

The SOHR learned that violent clashes caused the death of tens of members of both parties, and left tens injured with a different severity, while at least 21 members of the regime forces and their allied militiamen, while the SOHR documented the death of at least 38 members of ISIS, while the death toll is expected to increase because of the presence of injured people in serious conditions amid the continued clashes and heavy shelling between both parties.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published hours ago that the fighting is concentrated in areas at the western suburbs of Uqayribat town in the eastern countryside of Hama. Information was reported about the death and injury of several Russian soldiers in addition to casualties at both parties to the fighting. The SOHR also learned that ISIS managed to regain control over the western part of Uqayribat town following a counter attack it executed and was observed by the SOHR. Meanwhile, a violent explosion rocked the city and turned out to be caused by a booby-trapped car that targeted positions of the regime forces in the western part of the town.

The SOHR observed that the Russian and the regime’s warplanes and helicopters carried out tens of raids, raising the number of raids that targeted the eastern countryside of Hama since the dawn of today, Saturday the 2nd of September 2017, to more than 50. Reliable sources confirmed to the SOHR that the Russian forces took up positions in the eastern countryside of Hama. They also asserted that the Russian forces are present in Al-Mab’oja area in the northeastern countryside of Salamiyah, which witnessed a massacre earlier this year perpetrated by ISIS. Such massacre left tens of civilians and members of the regime forces and their allied militiamen dead.

The SOHR published earlier that the regime forces attempted to launch their attack from the east of Uqayribat through several areas following their failed attempts to advance through salamiyah city towards the west of Uqayribat. Such decision enabled the regime forces to advance into the areas and expand their scope of control. It also got them closer to strategic villages, including Soha village which is hundreds of meters away from Uqayribat town, by advancing into areas adjacent to the administrative border between Hama and Homs. The SOHR documented the death of about 40 civilians, including 7 children and 7 women, as a result of the intensive airstrikes and missile strikes carried out during the past 10 days on ISIS-controlled villages in the eastern countryside of Hama. It should be noted that around 5 thousand civilians are still trapped in those villages in the circle besieged by the regime forces and their allied militiamen. Raids also caused the injury of about 100 civilians, with varied degrees of severity. Thus, the death toll is still likely to rise especially amid such significant shortage in the medical capabilities necessary for the critical conditions and serious injuries. Such an escalated targeting of infrastructures and heavy shelling on and destruction of villages in the eastern countryside of Hama by the Russian and the regime’s warplanes along with its forces coincided with deteriorating humanitarian conditions in the area. About 5 thousand civilians are still trapped in this besieged area, namely the villages of the eastern countryside of Hama and the area linked to it in the eastern countryside of Homs. Tragically, they are experiencing a significant shortage of food and medicine and lack of hospitals, medical care and specialized doctors for the critical conditions. Local sources called upon International Organizations, through the SOHR, to put pressure on all actors to secure a safe passage for thousands of civilians – children, men, elderly, and women – to areas beyond the control of ISIS. Local sources confirmed to the SOHR that hundreds of families were transferred to areas near Ithriyah-Salamiyah road in order to move them to areas under the control of the factions and Hayyaat Tahrir Al-Sham. Contact was lost with tens of civilians while fleeing ISIS-controlled areas in the eastern countryside of Hama.