U.S.-led forces track Islamic State sleeper cells in Deir Ezzor

U.S.-led coalition backed by Kurdish fighters made an airdrop in eastern province of Deir Ezzor, tracking Daesh sleeper cells, local activists said Sunday.

At least ten suspected Daesh fighters were arrested in the raid of Basirah town, residents say.

The U.S. forces have made dozens of airdrops in the former ISIS-held territory to eliminate Daesh sleeper cells.

Observers have warned that border closures and mobilization of security resources due to the coronavirus pandemic could give rise to a surge in Daesh attacks.

The militant group, which once administered a proto-state the size of Great Britain, no longer has fixed positions, but it still has hundreds of fighters hunkered down in desert hideouts.

Daesh has been largely defeated in the country but has continued to carry out ambushes, assassinations and bombings there and still poses a threat along its border with Syria

Daesh has also carried out deadly attacks in Iraq in recent weeks.

The radical group has killed thousands of people since 2014. At least 5600 bodies were exhumed from Daesh mass graves in eastern Syria, according to local rights groups.

Source: Zamanalwsl