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ISIS Kills Nine Syria Troops, Militiamen, Says War Monitor

Members of the terrorist ISIS in Syria. (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights)
Members of the terrorist ISIS in Syria. (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights)
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ISIS Kills Nine Syria Troops, Militiamen, Says War Monitor

Members of the terrorist ISIS in Syria. (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights)
Members of the terrorist ISIS in Syria. (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights)

ISIS militants killed nine Syrian government troops and militiamen in an attack on military posts in the eastern desert, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Tuesday.

"ISIS cells carried out a surprise attack, targeting positions of the regime army and National Defense Forces in the western countryside of Deir-Ezzor, killing nine of them and wounding more than 20," the Britain-based war monitor said, AFP reported.

The Monday evening attack triggered a prolonged gunbattle which continued until dawn Tuesday.

ISIS stole a military vehicle and destroyed three others before withdrawing from the area, the Observatory said.

The militant group continues to mount attacks on troops and other government targets from desert hideouts where its militants regrouped after losing their last patch of territory in Syria in March 2019.

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US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
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US Links Ankara-Damascus Normalization to Political Solution in Syria

Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)
Meeting between Erdogan and Assad in 2010 (Archive)

Recent statements by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his willingness to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to normalize relations between the two countries have sparked mixed reactions.
While the Syrian opposition sees the possibility of such a meeting despite the challenges, Damascus views the statements as a political maneuver by the Turks. Meanwhile, the United States has tied the normalization process to achieving a political solution in Syria based on UN Security Council Resolution 2254, issued in 2015.
Turkish media reported on Thursday that a US administration official, who was not named, confirmed that Washington is against normalizing relations with the Syrian regime under Assad. He emphasized that Washington cannot accept normalizing ties with Damascus without progress toward a political solution that ends the conflicts in Syria.
Meanwhile, the head of the National Coalition of Syrian Revolution and Opposition Forces, Hadi al-Bahra, stated that a meeting between Assad and Erdogan is possible despite the obstacles. In a statement to Reuters on Thursday, Bahra said the meeting is feasible, even though Ankara is fully aware that the Assad regime cannot currently meet its demands and understands the regime’s limitations.
Bahra pointed out that the UN-led political process remains frozen and that he had briefed US and Western officials on the latest developments in the Syrian file. On Saturday, Bahra participated in a consultative meeting in Ankara with the Syrian Negotiation Commission, along with a high-level delegation from the US State Department, during which they exchanged views on the political solution and the need to establish binding mechanisms for implementing international resolutions related to the Syrian issue.
On the other side, Assad’s special advisor, Bouthaina Shaaban, dismissed Erdogan’s announcement that Ankara is awaiting a response from Damascus regarding his meeting with Assad for normalization as another political maneuver with ulterior motives.
Shaaban, speaking during a lecture at the Omani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which was reported by Turkish media on Thursday, stated that any rapprochement between the two countries is contingent on its withdrawal of forces from Syrian territory.