US backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) approaching the Deir ez-Zor region from the north work to the same objective as Islamic State terrorists, the Russian Defence Ministry said.
The MoD added that Syrian troops had been shelled from areas where SDF and US forces are stationed.
Russia had detected the transfer of SDF militants from Raqqa, stronghold of the Islamic State (IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL), to northern areas of Deir ez-Zor, the Russian Defense Ministry’s spokesman, Major General Igor Konashenkov, said in a statement.
“SDF militants work to the same objectives as IS terrorists. Russian drones and intelligence have not recorded any confrontations between IS and the ‘third force’, SDF,” Konashenkov said.
He added that the Syrian troops had been shelled at least twice from areas on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, where SDF militants are stationed together with US troops.
READ MORE: Syrian troops cross Euphrates as they advance east of Deir ez-Zor (VIDEO)
Russia is currently leading an offensive targeting IS terrorists in these areas, the ministry said.
“For this reason Russia unequivocally told the commanders of US forces in Al Udeid Air Base (Qatar) that it will not tolerate any shelling from the areas where SDF are stationed,” Konashenkov said.
According to the ministry, in the last 24 hours the Syrian government troops “continued their offensive operation” to destroy the last “IS bridgehead” near the city of Deir ez-Zor. Troops led by Syrian army General Suheil al-Hassan liberated around 16 square kilometers of territory and two settlements on the western bank of the Euphrates River.
“More than 85 percent of Deir ez-Zor’s territory is under the full control of Syrian troops. Over the next week the city will be liberated completely,” Konashenkov said.
Yet some 25 percent of Raqqa, the unofficial IS capital, remains in terrorist hands, the ministry said. IS captured Raqqa in January 2014 and since then the city has been fully controlled by the extremists.
The city of Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria was besieged by Islamic State in 2014. Syrian government forces lifted the blockade of the city in early September.
However, the liberation of Deir ez-Zor also triggered a confrontation between Syrian government forces and the US-backed SDF militants, the point of contention being control of Deir ez-Zor’s oil fields.
Following Damascus’ strategic victory food, medicine, and other essentials started to reach the city by convoy, where previously the inhabitants had to rely on air-drops.
