The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights

In the frame of its strong return to the east of Euphrates…ISIS finances itself by imposing “Zakat” upon merchants and people working in oil business threatening them of killing in the case that they abstained from paying it

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that masked men belong to the “Islamic State” organization targeted by a grenade, the house of the engineer “Ahmed Al-Ali” (the head of the maintenance department of the water department in Deir Ezzor Military Council) in Al-Busayrah city, without causing casualties, where this targeting is the second one of kind during September, and reliable sources informed the SOHR that the targeting in the two occasions was not to kill “Al-Ali”, rather they aimed to push him to subject to the organization’s demands represented by paying 15000 U.S. dollars as “Zakat”, and he was informed to do so via text messages on his mobile phone included the necessity of deliver this sum of money to be agreed later on how the deal to be accomplished, and he was threatened via text messages to be killed in the case that he abstained from paying the abovementioned sum of money, but Al-Ali refused to pay, so he has been targeted twice during this month.

The SOHR’s reliable sources added that ISIS members threw a shroud with the name “Abu Ismael” written on it, in reference to one of the owners of Al-Shuhayl Hospital in Deir Ezzor countryside, as a threatening message of killing in the case that he abstained from paying the Zakat imposed upon him by the organization, where the organization tends to finance itself through collecting Zakat from merchants and contractors especially those who work in oil business and supplying, by talking to the wanted person face to face after knocking his door under the night’s darkness and directly threatening him, or by sending text messages on the mobile phones including the wanted sum of money, and in the case that the receiver agrees -and that what often happens-, another message is sent including the way of accomplishing the deal, and after paying the Zakat, the person is given a receipt in order to ensure that the cells of the organization will not trouble or attack him.

The SOHR published on the 4th of September 2019, that areas of the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition east Euphrates are witnessing escalating activity for the “Islamic State” organization and its cells in secret and public, despite the large security operation by the International Coalition and SDF, where they carry out air drops, raids, and arrests on a daily basis, and they arrest members of the Organization’s cells, but the latter continues its activity increasingly in al-Raqqah and its countryside, Deir Ezzor countryside, al-Hasakah city and its countryside, and other places in the east Euphrates area, whether through assassinations carried out by planting IEDs and mines or through detonating booby-trapped vehicles, in addition to armed attacks with machineguns that mainly target members of the Syria Democratic Forces and those who cooperate with them, in addition to civilians connected to the Syria Democratic Forces one way or the other, and the Organization has not had enough with its secret activities in the area; where it is now threatening those who deal with SDF to target them if they do not “repent,” just like the leaflets that were hung yesterday on mosques of Abu Hardoub town in Deir Ezzor countryside, in addition to imposing financial royalties on traders and money holders in the Deir Ezzor countryside; in exchange for not getting near them or their business or attacking their oil wells and tankers.

The Syrian Observatory published on the 3rd of September 2019 that Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the Syria Democratic Forces with air cover of the Coalition planes, raided at dawn of Tuesday several houses in the desert north of Deir Ezzor city near al-Izba village, and the raid was accompanied by heavy gunfire in the area, after which SDF were able to arrest 2 people believed to be of the “Islamic State” Organization, also the Syrian Observatory learned that a child died as a result of the random shooting by SDF during these raids, the child is a displaced child from Marat village which is controlled by the regime forces, and the Syrian Observatory published hours ago that the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that members of the “Islamic State” organization hung leaflets on doors of mosques in Abu Hardoub town in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor, the leaflets contain names of people who “fell in Ridda” (apostasy) according to the Organization; after they joined the ranks of the Syria Democratic Forces, and because of that the “Islamic State” Organization demanded them to “repent” or they will be held accountable, this incident comes as a prominent evidence of audacity of the Organization’s cells caused by their very large presence within the Syria Democratic Forces’ controlled areas east of Euphrates, despite the daily security operations by the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition, however, the organization still has a great power across cells scattered throughout the areas, where they impose royalties on those who have money in exchange for not get near them or attacking their work places, such as the investor who was arrested yesterday by the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition in al-Shuhayl town east of Deir Ezzor, where he was a person who invests oil from the Syria Democratic Forces from al-Tank field and also he pays the Organization money for not attacking the wells and he oil tankers.