About 85% of Dayr al-Zawr back in Syria hands: Russia

Russia says the Syrian military has liberated more than 85 percent of the strategic eastern city of Dayr al-Zawr from Daesh terrorists.

According to reports, the Russian Defense Ministry speculated Thursday that the city would be completely liberated in a week’s time amid the Syrian army’s ongoing gains against the terrorists holed up there.

The Syrian army also freed two suburbs on the outskirts of Dayr al-Zawr and 16 square kilometers of the city from the control of Takfiri Daesh terrorists, said the Russian Defense Ministry’s spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov.

The Russian ministry also said the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab militants, has attacked Syrian military positions in the western-central province of Hama, a move in stark contradiction with the terms of the agreement on de-escalation zones in Syria.

The deal has been reached during the Syria peace process underway between the Syrian warring sides in Astana, Kazakhstan, with the mediation of Iran, Russia and Turkey.

The Syrian army’s liberation operation in Dayr al-Zawr is facing strong resistance and massive fire from areas where militant groups and US-backed forces are stationed, the Russian Defense Ministry said earlier this week.

SS