By Al-Fassel | 2024-08-21

In the predawn hours of August 9, Iran-backed forces operating in the eastern Syria province of Deir Ezzor committed a "massacre" in the border town of al-Dahla, killing 11 civilians, local sources said.

Most of them were women and children, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The missile attack targeted an area controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

With backing from the international coalition, the SDF routed the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) in 2019, and has continued to suppress the extremist group and maintain security in the area.

The massacre "comes less than 24 hours after a series of attacks carried out by a group of tribal gunmen headed by the so-called Ibrahim al-Hafel," per Deir Ezzor 24.

The tribal fighters attacked several SDF sites in eastern rural Deir Ezzor.

Al-Hafel, who heads the al-Akidat tribe, has entered into an alliance with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), along with several tribes closely connected with him.

But many other tribes refuse to cooperate with the Iranian elements.

Endangering civilians

On August 7, Iran-aligned groups succeeded in crossing the Euphrates river, the Observatory said.

The pro-Iranian fighters were subsequently pushed back to the opposite side of the Euphrates following fighting that left seven dead, among them a member of the SDF, three pro-Iranian militiamen and three civilians, it added.

In the early hours of August 12, a woman and a child were killed in Abu al-Hamam in eastern rural Deir Ezzor as a result of ground shelling by Iran-backed groups, the Observatory said.

About 10 civilians were injured in similar shelling in the towns and villages of al-Kashkiyah, al-Sabhah, Abu al-Hamam and Sweidan, it said.

Clashes between the SDF and Iran-backed local groups also caused fires in agricultural lands in al-Kashkiyah, and damage to civilian homes.

The fighting triggered a mass displacement of civilians from several areas in eastern rural Deir Ezzor, the Observatory said.

Iran-backed militias are furthering the Iranian regime's agenda, promoting the doctrine of Wilayat al-Faqih (Guardian of the Jurist), which calls for allegiance to Iranian leader Ali Khamenei.

In Deir Ezzor, militias have pressured local tribes to allow their sons to join their ranks, recruited and indoctrinated Syrian youth and forced local residents to leave their homes.

Their cross-border smuggling of weapons and drugs and storage of weapons in the area have created a dangerous situation for those who remain.