US-backed SDF, Syrian regime advance against Daesh in Deir Ezzor

US-backed militias and Syrian regime forces advanced in separate offensives against Daesh in eastern Syria on Saturday, piling pressure on shrinking territory the group still holds in oil-rich areas near the Iraqi border.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-allied ground force mainly comprised of PKK-linked YPG militants, launched a new operation against Daesh in the north of Deir Ezzor province that aims to capture areas north and east of the Euphrates river.

Syrian regime forces and their allies, backed by Russia and Iran, meanwhile seized an oilfield from the militants on the other side of the Euphrates and recaptured part of a road linking Deir Ezzor to areas held by Daesh further downstream.

The advances against Daesh in territory it has held for years as part of its self-declared caliphate will likely bring US-backed forces and the Syrian regime army into closer proximity.

A US warplane shot down a Syrian regime jet near Raqqa in June and the SDF accused the regime of bombing its positions, showing the risk of escalation between warring sides in a crowded battlefield.

TRT World’s Ahmed Al Burai reports.