SDF, Syrian tribal fighters scale back clashes: Exclusive
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Al Mayadeen's correspondent reports that the tribal fighters were able to take control of several areas in Deir Ezzor's countryside.
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Fighters with the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces SDF in Baghouz, Syria, on March 23, 2019 (AFP)
The intensity of clashes between Syrian fighters of local tribes and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the Deir Ezzor countryside has declined following an offensive targeting the northern and western rural areas of the province controlled by the SDF, Al Mayadeen sources said.
This attack marked the second most severe offensive by the tribes since September 2023, with the aim of gaining full control over the Deir Ezzor countryside.
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The decrease in intensity is due to the SDF's deployment of significant military reinforcements from al-Hasakah and its surrounding regions to regain control of areas seized by tribal fighters on Wednesday morning. Concurrently, international coalition forces were on high alert, conducting extensive aerial operations with warplanes and drones, including targeted fire, to push back the tribal fighters.
The sources anticipated that "all attacking forces would withdraw due to the absence of a stable supply line and the power imbalance, as the SDF has established supply routes to al-Hasakah, Raqqa, Ain al-Arab, and Manbij."
Popular resistance
The aim of the attack "is not territorial control but to affirm the tribes' rejection of the SDF and US forces' presence in the area, their control over oil and gas, and their influence on civil and military decisions," the sources added, stressing that the attack "is a form of popular resistance against this presence, which will continue until it is completely ended."
They also revealed that the SDF has "no popular support" in the area and that the locals "deal with them as a de facto force."
Tribal forces were able to penetrate through the towns of al-Kashkiya, Gharanij, Abu Hamam, Diban, and al-Latwa during the offensive, the sources said.
US helicopters targeted the Syrian Forces of the Fighters of the Tribes with machine guns along the bank of the Euphrates River in the town of Dhiban, east of Deir Ezzor, eastern Syria, according to Al Mayadeen reporter, as part of its support for the SDF.
Our correspondent had reported that the US forces brought reinforcements to the al-Omar oil field base in the Deir Ezzor countryside, in conjunction with the Arab tribes' attack on the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which have served as US proxies throughout the war on Syria.
Al Mayadeen's sources also confirmed that US coalition forces in the al-Omar oilfield were mobilized due to their proximity to the ongoing confrontations.
The SDF imposed a complete curfew in all areas under its control in the eastern and western Deir Ezzor countryside following the launch of the operation by the Fighters of the Tribes seeking to reclaim Syrian territories.
US bolsters bases in northeastern Syria with Apache helicopters
Last week, it was reported that the US military is continuing to bolster its bases in the occupied al-Hasakah province of northeastern Syria, deploying additional Apache helicopters and military equipment, according to a Syrian military source cited by Sputnik.
"US forces have reinforced their bases with 15 Apache helicopters to improve their ability to conduct attacks," the source said.
At the time, a Syrian military source told Sputnik that a US military plane landed at the Kharab al-Jir base, carrying military equipment, air defense missiles, logistics materials, and 25 service members.
Earlier the same day, the US DoD announced that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin would oversee the deployment of more forces to the Middle East to support "Israel", though the exact number of additional troops has yet to be determined.
In the past two weeks, the Israeli regime has assassinated two high-ranking Resistance leaders and carried out an air aggression on Yemen.
