Syrian Army Breaks Through Daesh Lines at Southern Entrance to Deir Ez-Zor

The Syrian Armed Forces have managed to overrun the positions of the Daesh terrorist group at the main southern entrance to the city of Deir Ez-Zor and joined the troops that were inside the besieged city, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

DEIR EZ-ZOR (Syria) (Sputnik) — The troops met at the state highway near the main southern gate of the city.

An operation to clear the area around the air base located east of Deir Ez-Zor from Daesh terrorists was kicked off earlier in the day.

Elite forces of the Syrian army launched an offensive from the north of the airbase, destroying Daesh's fortifications and equipment. At the same time, other units and allied forces have moved to the southern border of the city.

Syrian pro-government forces hold a position near the village of al-Maleha, in the northern countryside of Deir Ezzor, on September 9, 2017

© AFP 2023

The development comes after a vanguard unit of Syrian forces with Russian air support broke on Saturday the siege of the airfield, where 1,000 Syrian troops have been pinned down since January this year. The Russian Defense Ministry called the breakthrough the biggest victory over Daesh militants in Syria in three years.

On Tuesday, the Syrian Armed Forces had another major breakthrough in the vicinity of Deir Ez-Zor. They lifted the blockade in the west of the city paving the way for further advancement to the airbase.

Syria has been in the grip of a civil war for over six years. Government forces are fighting against Syrian opposition groups, who strive to overthrow President Bashar Assad, as well as numerous extremist and terrorist groups, such as Daesh and Jabhat Fatah al Sham, which are both outlawed in Russia.