In North and East Syria, several attacks were carried out against civilians and defense forces in Deir ez-Zor, Tabqa, and Raqqa by Syrian transitional government forces and ISIS cells between November 15 and 21. In response to the attacks, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and Internal Security Forces carried out legitimate defense to protect the region.
Details of the attacks recorded in one week are as follows:
On November 15, Syrian transitional government forces attacked SDF positions on the front line in the village of Ghanem al-Ali, east of Raqqa, with suicide drones and heavy weapons. Three fighters were wounded in the attack. The SDF later announced that the attack had been repelled and the attackers wounded.
On the same day, armed men riding motorcycles with ISIS flags and symbols fired shots at the vehicle of Baghouz Co-Mayor Ehmed Nafii, causing material damage.
On November 16, in the town of Mihamadiyah, west of the Deir ez-Zor Canton, a member of the Internal Security Forces was shot dead by armed individuals on the road while returning home.
Unidentified assailants set fire to the Education Association in the village of Kharanij, east of Deir ez-Zor Canton, on November 18. The attack, which caused material damage, came a few weeks after the Zenubiya Women’s Community building in the village of Abu Hemam in the same countryside was burned down and graffiti referring to ISIS was written on it.
On November 19, the SDF shot down two ISIS drones that took off from positions belonging to the transitional government forces on the front line in the village of Ghanem al-Ali in the eastern countryside of Raqqa. SDF stated that some groups had supported ISIS to facilitate the attack. SDF took action during the night to locate the drones in the southern and eastern countryside of Raqqa.
Heavy fighting on the same front continued on November 20. Transitional government forces blocked the road between Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor near the towns of al-Bohamad and Ghanem al-Ali in the east of Raqqa Canton. They detained dozens of young people traveling on buses from North-East Syria to Deir ez-Zor and the interior of Syria at the Raqqa-Maydan checkpoint.
On the same day, mercenaries affiliated with the 80th Brigade of the Transitional Government attacked the residents of the village of Jub Abyad, north of the town of Deir Hafer in Tabqa countryside. The attack with light and medium weapons, which left many civilians injured, took place two days after the killing of Abdullah al-Moussa from the same village.
On the same day, Internal Security Forces neutralized a two-person ISIS cell in Hesekê. Internal Security Forces reported that two mercenaries admitted to organizing attacks against SDF and Internal Security Forces under the supervision of leaders in Damascus and Serêkaniyê, and to providing them with weapons, money, and coordination.
ISIS cells attacked security checkpoints belonging to the Internal Security Forces in the villages of Ebriha and Ziban in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor on November 21 with guns and bombs. Security forces launched patrols in the area to capture them.
The recent wave of attacks carries the risk of further escalating tensions in the region. The SDF and Internal Security Forces continue to counter these threats in order to protect the people and ensure the stability of the region.