Islamic State terrorists regrouping in Syria for new offensive

The Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL/IS/Daesh) is regrouping in Syria to carry out new offensives against the government and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a military source in Damascus told Al-Masdar on Tuesday.

According to the source, the Syrian military believes the Islamic State is planning to launch a major offensive in several areas, including the eastern countryside of Homs, Al-Mayadeen (Deir Ezzor), and Al-Raqqa.

He said the Islamic State’s sleeper cells have exponentially increased their attacks against the government and Syrian Democratic Forces, with a primary concentration on Al-Raqqa, Al-Shaddadi, Palmyra, Al-Mayadeen, and Al-Sukhneh.

The source added that the terrorist group has been collecting weapons during their night raids and could launch a big operation in the coming weeks.

For the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), they have fallen victim to several Islamic State ambushes in central Syria, despite sending reinforcements to the Palmyra and Al-Mayadeen fronts.

In particular, the Islamic State is carrying out their attacks at night, which gives them enough cover to slip back into the desert.

In Raqqa city, the terrorist group has also relied on ambushes to wreak havoc in several areas, prompting the Syrian Democratic Forces to step up their security.

While the terrorist group controls a small porition of territory in Syria, they do possess enough personnel to capture towns and take advantage of ongoing battles between the warring parties in this conflict.

Should Turkey go through with their offensive in the eastern region of the Euphrates River Valley, this will force the SDF to redeploy their troops to northern Syria in order to deal with the looming threat on the border.

Source: Almasdar News