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2023-09-06 Syria-Lebanon-Iran
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SDF shells last tribal-held town after days of east Syria unrest; al-Hol ladies flee, fearing tribal control
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[Rudaw] Days of deadly clashes in Syria’s eastern Deir ez-Zor province between Kurdish-led, US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and local Arab fighters are culminating in a looming battle as the SDF attempt to retake the last town held by tribesmen, a war monitor said on Monday.
Tensions in Arab-majority Deir ez-Zor province have surged for over a week after the SDF arrested Ahmed Khbeil, better known as Abu Khawla, commander of the SDF-linked Deir ez-Zor Military Council, and four of his colleagues, accusing him of collaborating with the Syrian government, drug trafficking, and failing to curb an increase of Islamic State (ISIS) activities in the area.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based war monitor, said on Monday that fighters of the SDF have launched an offensive and began shelling Dhiban town, considered the last stronghold of local Arab fighters, after negotiations for their surrender failed.
The town is being shelled from several fronts, with the SDF calling on civilians to leave as fighting ensues.
The violence in Kurdish-controlled Deir ez-Zor since clashes erupted on August 27 has killed at least 71 people so far, including 39 local fighters, 23 SDF members, and nine civilians, while nearly a hundred have been injured, according to SOHR.
According to the SDF, the clashes intensified when pro-government forces from the west of the Euphrates crossed into SDF-held territories to partake in the clashes and deepen unrest in the area.
The SDF has rejected any accusations of disputes with Arab tribes, saying that the clashes are instead against collaborators of the Syrian government and “beneficiaries” of Khbeil, who profited from his alleged drug trafficking and mismanagement.
Recent armed confrontations between tribal groups and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have triggered turmoil in the al-Hol camp, resulting in the flight of some women, including Moroccans, towards Idlib, according to sources from the families of Moroccans stranded in Syria.
Reports from Hespress newspaper indicate that the unrest in northeastern Syria has created an opportunity for smugglers, who have received substantial sums of money from women seeking to be smuggled to Idlib on the Syrian-Ottoman Turkish border.
The women reportedly feared that tribal factions would take control of the region, prisons, and camps, subjecting them to potential Dire Revenge and unfair trials.
| Oh dear. The poor darlings. |
The stranded individuals were apprehensive about the prospect of a weakened Kurdish presence in the area, potentially allowing ISIS elements to infiltrate and detain them, despite the Kurds imposing restrictions by closing markets and withholding water.
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Posted by trailing wife 2023-09-06 00:34||
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