Syrian Army Kills 70 IS Militants in Two Days Near Syria-Turkey Border

After two days of fighting, Syrian forces have managed to regain the territory, located some 48 kilometers south of the Turkish border. They have also reportedly destroyed warehouses with militants' weapons and equipment.

BEIRUT, December 26 (Sputnik) — The Syrian Army, alongside a volunteer militia, has killed some 70 Islamic State fighters in two days near the Turkish border, the Lebanese Al-Manar TV channel reported Friday.

According to Al-Manar, Syrian forces have been carrying out an offensive south of the northeastern border city of Qamishli, aimed at weakening the militants’ “security ring” around the area and regaining control of the strategically important heights in the Abu Qasayeb and Tal Ghazal settlements. From here, IS militants have been able to carry out attacks on Qamishli and the nearby airport.

Syrian forces managed to regain the territory, located some 48 kilometers south of the Turkish border, after two days of fighting, the TV channel reported.

Most of the IS militants killed in the military offensive were foreign nationals who had entered Syria through Turkey, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency.

Meanwhile, in the port city of Latakia, not far from the western part of the Syria-Turkey border, Syrian forces have reportedly destroyed warehouses with the IS’s weapons and military equipment.

The Syrian government has been fighting a number of militias since an armed uprising began in 2011, the most prominent insurgent group being the Islamic State, which has seized vast areas of the country, as well as in neighboring Iraq.

IS fighters, who have declared an Islamic caliphate on the territories under their control, are also being targeted by airstrikes carried out by an international coalition led by the United States.