Select date
US-backed forces approaching Deir ez-Zor from north ‘work to ISIS objectives’ – Russian MoD
US backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) approaching the Deir ez-Zor region from the north work to the same objective as Islamic State terrorists, the Russian Defence Ministry said.
The MoD added that Syrian troops had been shelled from areas where SDF and US forces are stationed.
Russia had detected the transfer of SDF militants from Raqqa, stronghold of the Islamic State (IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL), to northern areas of Deir ez-Zor, the Russian Defense Ministry's spokesman, Major General Igor Konashenkov, said in a statement.
“SDF militants work to the same objectives as IS terrorists. Russian drones and intelligence have not recorded any confrontations between IS and the ‘third force’, SDF,” Konashenkov said.
He added that the Syrian troops had been shelled at least twice from areas on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, where SDF militants are stationed together with US troops.
READ MORE: Syrian troops cross Euphrates as they advance east of Deir ez-Zor (VIDEO)
