Arab tribal militias attacked the positions of Kurdish formations of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River in Syria, as reported by the Syrian newspaper Al Watan.
The militias fired machine guns at SDF checkpoints near the settlements of As Sawa and Al-Hawaj in the province of Deir ez-Zor. One Kurdish fighter was killed, and there were wounded personnel. The SDF command deployed reinforcements and conducted a retaliatory operation against the militias, causing losses, and forcing them to retreat into the Syrian desert.
On September 25, Sheikh Ibrahim al-Khafel, head of the Arab militia Jaysh al-Ashair, declared the resumption of hostilities against Kurdish forces after a truce reached on September 6. He aims to "restore the Syrian government's authority over the entire territory of Deir ez-Zor."
The conflict between the SDF and Jaysh al-Ashair, driven by demands for a more equitable division of Syrian oil revenues, resulted in casualties on both sides. Following the defeat of the Islamic State (IS, banned in Russia) in 2019, SDF controls most of the provinces of Al Hasakah and Raqqa, as well as the northeast of Deir ez-Zor, where Syrian oil fields are concentrated, with the support of the US, which has established nine military bases in the region.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: Russian Ministry of Defense
Based on materials from TASS