Iraq News

Surprise ISIS attack kills 25 regime forces in east Syria

The "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) launched a surprise attack near a town in eastern Syria they had lost six months ago, killing at least 25 regime forces, AFP reported Thursday (April 19th).

At least 13 extremists were also killed in the attack which ISIS carried out near Mayadeen on Wednesday afternoon, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Mayadeen lies in the eastern province of Deir Ezzor on the western bank of the Euphrates and is flanked by the vast Badiya desert to its west and south.

A military source on Thursday however denied any attack against positions of the Syrian army along the western bank of the Euphrates.

But intermittent bombardment on army positions from its eastern bank had prompted retaliation with suitable weapons, the source said.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, control most of the territory to the east of the Euphrates, where a few villages are still under ISIS control.

Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said Thursday morning "ISIS attempts to advance in the direction of the town of Mayadeen are ongoing" from the Badiya desert.

He said it was the "largest ISIS attack since they were expelled from the town" by regime forces and their allies in October 2017.

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