Syrian Army Reclaims Territory From ISIS in Homs

Syrian troops and pro-government forces have retaken a large swathe of desert territory from the so-called Islamic State in Homs province, the Associated Press reported.

Pro-government forces established control over a strategic highway linking the city of Palmyra to the capital Damascus, after capturing around 2,000 square miles (5,000 square km) in the desert area known as the Badia, the state-run Syrian Central Military Media said.

The advance cut off the militant group from a once-vital artery between territories in Palmyra, Deir Ezzor and the de-facto ISIS capital Raqqa.

The two-week-long offensive in the strategic Homs desert is part of the Syrian government’s plan to go after the militants in Deir Ezzor, one of the last major ISIS strongholds in Syria.

Coalition Airstrikes Blamed for Deaths of 18 People Near Raqqa

Airstrikes near the ISIS stronghold Raqqa, believed to have been carried out by U.S.-led coalition forces, killed at least 18 people on Sunday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

The U.K.-based monitor said that the airstrikes, also reported by the Associated Press, targeted a road connecting two villages south of Raqqa. The activist group Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently said that some strikes hit buses carrying civilians.

Last week, at least 100 civilians, including women and children, were reportedly killed by U.S.-led coalition air raids on the ISIS-held town of Mayadeen, in Syria’s eastern Deir Ezzor province.

Iraqi Militias Push Toward Syria Border

Iran-backed Iraqi militias drew closer to the Syrian border, after capturing a number of ISIS-held positions near the area, Reuters reported.

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) seized the village of Kojo and other areas in the Sinjar mountain region in Iraq on Sunday.

Iraqi paramilitaries are attempting to link up with pro-government forces across the border to support the Syrian army and allied forces in their push toward ISIS-held territory in Raqqa and Deir Ezzor.

Tens of thousands of Iranian-backed PMF fighters are already fighting on behalf of President Bashar al-Assad’s government in Syria.

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• Business Insider: An Exiled Syrian Journalist Tells Us What It Was Like to Write Under Assad
• Agence France-Presse: Civilians Flee ISIS-Held Syria Cities After Strikes