Islamic State (IS, former ISIS/ISIL) terrorists have started moving tanks and other heavy weaponry to the Deir ez-Zor area in a desperate attempt to hold their positions in the region following the successful offensive of the Syrian Army, the Russian defense ministry has said."Following the successful offensive action of the Syrian Armed Forces group supported by the Russian Air Forces in the Ghanem Ali area, Islamic State terrorists try to regroup and establish fortified defensive positions in the Deir ez-Zor area," the ministry said in statement.The ministry said further that the actions of the jihadists apparently show that they "recognize the fact that the staging area around Deir ez-Zor is the last stronghold of the international terrorists on the Syrian soil."Over the last 24 hours, Russian aircraft destroyed "four tanks, 16 all-terrain vehicles with high-caliber machine guns mounted on them as well as two fortified positions that had gun lines," the statement says.Syrian government forces supported by Russian military planes are continuing their offensive on terrorists entrenched around Deir ez-Zor and are now advancing alongside the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, the statement added.On Sunday, the Russian defense ministry said the offensive operation of Syrian government forces supported by Russian warplanes led to the defeat of the "most capable and best armed group of [Islamic State] in the Euphrates River valley."The terrorists suffered heavy losses during the battle near the town of Ghanem Ali, located in the eastern part of the Raqqa governorate south of the Euphrates, the ministry said, with around 800 terrorists killed in the operation. Some 13 tanks, 29 pickup trucks with mounted high-caliber machine guns as well as nine artillery pieces were also destroyed in the armed clash Sunday.The key Euphrates city of Deir ez-Zor has been under terrorist siege for two and a half years after being cut off from government-held areas in the May 2015 jihadist offensive on Palmyra. The surrounded city, alongside a neighboring military base and airfield, have been sustained with food and ammunition by Russian and Syrian transport planes and helicopters., according to General Sergey Rudskoy, spokesman for the Russian General Staff. The Russian Air Force also significantly intensified its operations against Islamic State in August, upping the number of sorties to 60-70 per day as the push for Deir ez-Zor gains momentum.While the Syrian Army and allied forces are pushing toward the besieged city, the situation in the enclave remains tense.In September 2016, jihadists managed to capture several key positions in the area in an offensive that coincided with a US-led coalition airstrike that mistakenly hit Syrian Army positions in the city which left some 200 soldiers dead or injured.The extremists then exploited this success, eventually slicing the enclave in two in January, disrupting the supply line between the airfield and the rest of the stronghold. </s> Islamic State fighters have broken through government defensive lines in the Syrian city of Deir ez-Zor, surrounding a military airport and cutting off food supplies for roughly a quarter of a million civilians in what could become a major humanitarian disaster.

Deir ez-Zor in eastern Syria is divided between the militants and the government of Bashar al-Assad. The areas controlled by the government have long been under siege but were sustained by supplies flown in to the nearby military airport and by air drops from the World Food Programme.

But on Monday, Isis fighters, which sources from the city said were primarily reinforcements coming over the border from Iraq’s Anbar province, broke through government lines, splitting its territory in half and taking control of the area where the WFP’s air drops landed.

The UN body announced on Monday that it had halted its air drops, leaving a quarter of a million civilians believed to reside in the government-held areas of Deir ez-Zor under a tightened Isis siege. The Syrian military said it responded with a series of airstrikes on Isis positions in the area.

Areas controlled by Isis are not covered under a nationwide ceasefire deal intended to pave the way for peace talks that will begin next week in Kazakhstan.

The attack is the fiercest assault by Isis on the city after months of stalemate and has already killed dozens on both sides. It comes as the group faces concerted assaults on its territory in both Syria and Iraq, and as it grapples with the losses of key leaders in assassination strikes by the US-led coalition.

In Iraq, the group is under attack in its most populous city, Mosul, where Iraqi forces backed by the US and militia fighters are inching their way forward.

In Syria the group has lost much of the countryside around its de facto capital, Raqqa, and is facing a Turkish-backed assault in the coming days on a key city north of Aleppo, al-Bab. “Al-Bab now is surrounded and the al-Bab operation is going full force despite some hiccups along the way,” said Ibrahim Kalin, a spokesman for the Turkish president. “We are determined to clear that city from all Daesh [Isis] elements.”

Observers believe the aim of the Isis assault on Deir ez-Zor is to pre-empt any Syrian government offensive on its territory while the group is distracted by battles elsewhere. The area under Isis control in the city has an estimated 10,000 civilians and is hemmed in by government forces to the south and the Euphrates river to the north.

A source from Deir ez-Zor with knowledge of the city’s terrain said Isis lacks the firepower to take control of the entire city. “They most likely wanted to take the initiative and prevent regime attacks, cut off government soldiers in the city, and put a stop to the air drops,” the source said. “Their positions right now are exposed so they’re likely to move towards the military airport and seize civilian districts to take shelter there, so the regime can’t attack them unless they adopt a scorched-earth policy.”

The military airport in Deir ez-Zor, manned by elite units from the Syrian Republican Guard, has withstood repeated assaults by Isis.

The city was first besieged when Isis conquered the historic city of Palmyra, cutting off land supply routes into Deir ez-Zor city except for supplies flown in by air. Many of the city’s residents have endured harsh deprivation, with limited fuel, food and water and repeated flare-ups of violence.

Deir ez-Zor has long had major strategic importance. It is close to key oilfields that were a crucial financial lifeline for Isis and is also near militant supply lines that were used to smuggle fighters across the nearby Iraqi border, even during the US occupation.

The fighting in Deir ez-Zor shows Isis still has the capacity to launch major military operations despite the loss of territory and tens of thousands of fighters on multiple battlefronts over the last two-and-a-half years. Late last year the group once again took control of Palmyra after the retreat of the Syrian military, which had taken the city back from Isis just months earlier. </s> As the Syrian Army, supported by the Russian Air Force, is on the verge of breaking the Islamic State (IS, former ISIS/ISIL) siege of the city of Deir ez-Zor, RT takes a closer look at why this battle could become the beginning of the end for the terrorist group.

The Syrian governmental forces continue to successfully develop their offensive on Deir ez-Zor, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a press release Monday. Units commanded by General Suheil al-Hassan moved another 8 kilometers closer to the city over the last 24 hours and “took control over two strategically important high points.”

The Syrian Army also drove Islamic State terrorists out from their positions near the road connecting Palmyra and Deir ez-Zor, the ministry said.

Russia continues to lend air support to the Syrian forces. In their most recent 80 sorties, the Russian Air Forces destroyed “two tanks, three infantry fighting vehicles, and more than 10 all-terrain vehicles with heavy weapons mounted on them. The terrorists lost more than 70 people," the ministry said.

“Crushing Islamic State forces in the Deir ez-Zor area and lifting the blockade of the city will signify a strategic defeat for the international terrorist group in the Syrian Arab Republic,” the statement says.

Islamic State defenses on the outkirts of Deir ez-Zor are effectively collapsing, Syria's SANA news agency reported, with the Syrian Air Force successfully destroying Islamic State headquarters in the Hweika neighborhood in the city's west, killing at least nine terrorist commanders, and inflicting heavy losses on the jihadists in the villages of Ayyash and Shmeitiyeh, forcing many to flee or surrender.

According to some reports, the units of the Syrian Army advancing on the city from the west are just 10 kilometers away from a military base of the government forces located in a western neighborhood of the city.

Earlier, the governor of Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province, Mohammed Ibrahim Samra, told Reuters that the Syrian Army would arrive at the city “in 24-48 hours at the most.”

Retaking Deir ez-Zor is of great importance for the fight against Islamic State in no small part due to its strategic location. It is the largest city in eastern Syria and the seventh-largest city in the whole country.

Deir ez-Zor and the surrounding governorate of the same name are located on the Syrian border with Iraq, so, if captured by the governmental forces, they will leave Islamic State terrorists effectively trapped in the heart of Syria in their only remaining stronghold of Raqqa.

“It is the last staging point for this terrorist organization, there are no other huge cities or major towns” in the area controlled by Islamic State, Martin Jay, a Beirut-based journalist, told RT. He also said that the liberation of Deir ez-Zor would be a “turning point” in the Syrian war.

“Once the city is taken and the surrounding area is flushed out of ISIS fighters we can really start to talk about the end of the war and about a new chapter of possibly restoring peace in [Syria],” he said.

Liberating the city would also give the governmental forces strategic advantage over the terrorists as it will “provide Syrian armed forces and their allies with a really stable foothold in this part of northeast Syria,” geopolitical analyst Patrick Henningsen told RT.

The terrorists also apparently understand the strategic importance of Deir ez-Zor as they repeatedly pulled their strongest units and heavy weapons to the area, preparing for the last stand, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

“The remaining [terrorist] forces are heading there. According to our data, militants from Mosul [in Iraq] moved there and the most battle-ready units from Raqqa,” General Sergey Rudskoy, spokesman for the Russian General Staff, said in late August.

A week later, the ministry said that the extremists also moved “tanks, all-terrain vehicles with high-caliber weapons and mortars mounted on them” to the Deir ez-Zor area, adding that the actions of the jihadists apparently show that they “recognize the fact that the staging area around Deir ez-Zor is the last stronghold of the international terrorists on the Syrian soil.”

The extremists’ efforts have so far been futile as the Syrian Army supported by Russian warplanes already defeated "the most capable and best armed group of ISIL in the Euphrates River valley,” according to the Russian Defense Ministry.

In the battle that took place on August 27, 800 terrorists and dozens of vehicles and heavy weapons were destroyed by the Syrian forces actively supported by Russian aircraft, the ministry said at that time.

On September 3, the ministry said that “the last major pocket of terrorist resistance in central Syria has been eliminated” during the battle over the strategic town of Akerbat in Hama governorate.

“The operation to destroy a large group of Islamic State fighters in the eastern part of the Hama province was carried out with the active support of the Russian Air Force” that destroyed terrorist strongholds and their armored hardware as well as IS artillery positions, control points and communication outposts, the ministry said.

A day earlier, Moscow said that once the Deir ez-Zor blockade is lifted, the terrorists’ strategic defeat in Syria will be imminent. In mid-August, the Russian defense minister, Sergey Shoigu, said that the fall of Islamic State in Deir ez-Zor would signal the end of the extremist group.

“Today there are key points, including Deir ez-Zor. I would say, first of all, Deir ez-Zor,” he said at that time, adding that “this is perhaps the main point at the Euphrates, which will in many ways indicate the end of the fight against ISIS.”



This assessment was also shared by the UN special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, who said on September 1 that he expected the remaining Islamic State strongholds to fall within the next two months.

“What we are seeing is in my opinion the beginning of the end of this war… what we need to make sure is that this becomes also the beginning of peace,” the diplomat told BBC radio.

Apart from its strategic importance for the military defeat of IS, ending the siege of Deir ez-Zor would also have a significant economic effect and become a great relief for thousands of people currently trapped in the city surrounded by jihadists.

Deir ez-Zor is the capital of an oil-rich eastern Syrian province and the center of the Syrian oil industry that once served as a source of wealth to Islamic State as it captured the area and besieged the city. Depriving terrorists of these resources would be another significant blow for the extremist group.

It might also be one of the sources of revival of the Syrian economy following the end of the war. Some of the oil and gas fields in the province have already been liberated as the Syrian Army was pushing forward toward the city.

A key Euphrates city, Deir ez-Zor has been under terrorist siege for two and a half years, after being cut off from government-held areas in May 2015 during the jihadists’ offensive on Palmyra. Islamic State terrorists effectively blocked all commercial and humanitarian access into the city, trapping hundreds of thousands of civilians with little or no means to survive.

Between 93,000 and 125,000 civilians are still reportedly trapped in the city, living under appalling conditions, according to different estimates.

The surrounded city, alongside a neighboring military base and airfield, have since been supplied with food and ammunition via airdrops by Russian and Syrian transport planes and helicopters.

“May God make them victorious, and may He make ISIS humiliated. May God make us free of (ISIS) by the will of our army. I salute our army and president,” one resident told RT in August.

“We wouldn't have sat here without the Syrian Arab Army, we are sleeping while the army is protecting us,” another civilian added.

Encouraged by reports that the lifting of the blockade was days away, the people in the city celebrated the news late on September 3. </s> ISIS-affiliated Amaq News Agency has announced that it has successfully split the government-held pockets of Deir Ezzor in two.

The terrorist group are now besieging the military air base that has been separated from the city.

To successfully besiege the military base, ISIS has relentlessly been sending in suicide bombers to weaken the Syrian Army defences.

Over 40 Syrian air strikes was not enough to divert the waves of ISIS attacks.

The cemetery is still under Syrian Army control and if ISIS do not quickly capture it, they remain susceptible to a counterattack and ending the siege.

Meanwhile the Syrian Army continue to repell the ISIS offensive on the southern axis in Panorama and Al-Mohandesin, whilst Syrian air strikes continue to target ISIS positions on Mt. Tharda.

The civilian areas of Al-Qossour and Al-Joura are being targeted by indiscriminate ISIS shelling resulting in the death of one woman and her daughter being injured.

It has been estimated that as many as 14,000 ISIS fighters are participating in this operation to capture Deir Ezzor from government forces.

Meanwhile, ISIS has promised a house and a wife in Deir Ezzor for every fighter who participates in the battle.

As a government enclave in the middle of ISIS territory, the Syrian Army serves as a thorn in the back and diverts many ISIS fighters from other fronts such as Mosul in Iraq.

Advertisements </s> Syrian troops are now at the gates of the Islamic State-besieged city of Deir ez-Zor, the governor of the province said, as the government forces continue to press forward, obliterating terrorist positions in the vicinity and on the outskirts of the city.

“The heroes of the army will arrive at Deir ez-Zor in 24-48 hours at the most,” the governor of Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province, Mohammed Ibrahim Samra, told Reuters, adding that the Syrian Army was only 18-20 kilometers (11-12 miles) away from the city.

Earlier, an elite unit of the Syrian Army, called the Tiger Forces, came within 18 kilometers (11 miles) of the besieged city after destroying IS (Islamic State, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorist positions on the Bishri mountain chain, Al-Masdar News reported.

Despite massive redeployment of fighters and military hardware by the Islamic State terrorists from other parts of Iraq and Syria to Deir ez-Zor, the Syrian Army, with the help of the Russian Air Force, has been advancing toward the city on several fronts.

The key Euphrates city of Deir ez-Zor has been under terrorist siege for two and a half years, after being cut off from government-held areas in May 2015 during the jihadists’ offensive on Palmyra. The surrounded city, alongside a neighboring military base and airfield, have since been supplied with food and ammunition via airdrops by Russian and Syrian transport planes and helicopters.

On Sunday, the Syrian Army attacked IS barricades on the southwestern outskirts of the city, Sana news agency reported, killing several terrorists and seizing their weapons and ammunition.

“We carried out at dawn a successful raid against one of ISIS terrorists’ barricades in the direction of the Water Resources area through crawling and infiltrating it and throwing several bombs when we almost approached the area, killing all the terrorists at the site,” one of the soldiers told Sana.

The Syrian Army units have also expanded control in al-Badia, “eliminating the last gatherings of the organization in Hreibsha area that is located in the southwest of Deir Ezzor province.” According to Sana news agency, many terrorists have fled as the army is also advancing east of al-Sukhneh toward Deir ez-Zor.

The Russian Defense Ministry has previously stated that breaking the blockade of Deir ez-Zor will mark the defeat of the last capable grouping of IS terrorists in Syria.

“ISIL militants are still attempting to stop the advancement of the Syrian troops by relocating to the Deir ez-Zor region armor, pick-up trucks with high-caliber machine guns mounted on them, weapons and ammunition. They are creating fortifications with positions for artillery and mortars,” the Russian Defense Ministry reported Saturday.

In response, the Russian forces in Syria intensified airstrikes on the jihadists, destroying their armored vehicles, tanks, artillery positions and supply depots.

 “Defeating ISIL in the Deir ez-Zor region and lifting the blockade of the city will signify a strategic defeat of the international terrorist group in Syria,” the ministry said.

On Saturday, the Russian Air Force also backed the swift actions of the army and its allies who have liberated the town of Akerbat – considered to be the last major terrorist stronghold in Hama province and central Syria.

Lifting the Deir ez-Zor blockade will “provide Syrian armed forces and their allies with a really stable foothold in this part of northeast Syria,” geopolitical analyst Patrick Henningsen told RT.

“Strategically, you can’t say enough about how important this effort is right now,” he added. “Having a strategic partner like Russia with a viable air force, being able to coordinate targeting intelligence, being able to mount counter-insurgency efforts on the ground with air support, is incredible.”

The UN’s special envoy for Syria, Steffan de Mistura, also expects all major IS positions in Syria to fall by the end of October.

“What we are seeing is in my opinion the beginning of the end of this war… what we need to make sure is that this becomes also the beginning of peace,” de Mistura said on Friday. “And that is where the challenge starts at this very moment.” </s> Syrian troops are now at the gates of the Islamic State-besieged city of Deir ez-Zor, the governor of the province said, as the government forces continue to press forward, obliterating terrorist positions in the vicinity and on the outskirts of the city.

“The heroes of the army will arrive at Deir ez-Zor in 24-48 hours at the most,” the governor of Syria’s Deir ez-Zor province, Mohammed Ibrahim Samra, told Reuters, adding that the Syrian Army was only 18-20 kilometers (11-12 miles) away from the city.

Earlier, an elite unit of the Syrian Army, called the Tiger Forces, came within 18 kilometers (11 miles) of the besieged city after destroying IS (Islamic State, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorist positions on the Bishri mountain chain, Al-Masdar News reported.

Despite massive redeployment of fighters and military hardware by the Islamic State terrorists from other parts of Iraq and Syria to Deir ez-Zor, the Syrian Army, with the help of the Russian Air Force, has been advancing toward the city on several fronts.

The key Euphrates city of Deir ez-Zor has been under terrorist siege for two and a half years, after being cut off from government-held areas in May 2015 during the jihadists’ offensive on Palmyra. The surrounded city, alongside a neighboring military base and airfield, have since been supplied with food and ammunition via airdrops by Russian and Syrian transport planes and helicopters.

On Sunday, the Syrian Army attacked IS barricades on the southwestern outskirts of the city, Sana news agency reported, killing several terrorists and seizing their weapons and ammunition.

“We carried out at dawn a successful raid against one of ISIS terrorists’ barricades in the direction of the Water Resources area through crawling and infiltrating it and throwing several bombs when we almost approached the area, killing all the terrorists at the site,” one of the soldiers told Sana.

The Syrian Army units have also expanded control in al-Badia, “eliminating the last gatherings of the organization in Hreibsha area that is located in the southwest of Deir Ezzor province.” According to Sana news agency, many terrorists have fled as the army is also advancing east of al-Sukhneh toward Deir ez-Zor.

READ MORE: ISIS terrorists pulling strongest units to Deir ez-Zor for last stand – Russian MoD

The Russian Defense Ministry has previously stated that breaking the blockade of Deir ez-Zor will mark the defeat of the last capable grouping of IS terrorists in Syria.

“ISIL militants are still attempting to stop the advancement of the Syrian troops by relocating to the Deir ez-Zor region armor, pick-up trucks with high-caliber machine guns mounted on them, weapons and ammunition. They are creating fortifications with positions for artillery and mortars,” the Russian Defense Ministry reported Saturday.

In response, the Russian forces in Syria intensified airstrikes on the jihadists, destroying their armored vehicles, tanks, artillery positions and supply depots.

“Defeating ISIL in the Deir ez-Zor region and lifting the blockade of the city will signify a strategic defeat of the international terrorist group in Syria,” the ministry said.

On Saturday, the Russian Air Force also backed the swift actions of the army and its allies who have liberated the town of Akerbat – considered to be the last major terrorist stronghold in Hama province and central Syria.

Lifting the Deir ez-Zor blockade will “provide Syrian armed forces and their allies with a really stable foothold in this part of northeast Syria,” geopolitical analyst Patrick Henningsen told RT.

“Strategically, you can’t say enough about how important this effort is right now,” he added. “Having a strategic partner like Russia with a viable air force, being able to coordinate targeting intelligence, being able to mount counter-insurgency efforts on the ground with air support, is incredible.”

The UN’s special envoy for Syria, Steffan de Mistura, also expects all major IS positions in Syria to fall by the end of October.

“What we are seeing is in my opinion the beginning of the end of this war… what we need to make sure is that this becomes also the beginning of peace,” de Mistura said on Friday. “And that is where the challenge starts at this very moment.” </s> Syrian troops are now at the gates of the Islamic State-besieged city of Deir ez-Zor, the governor of the province said, as the government forces continue to press forward, obliterating terrorist positions in the vicinity and on the outskirts of the city.the governor of Syria's Deir ez-Zor province, Mohammed Ibrahim Samra, told Reuters, adding that the Syrian Army was only 18-20 kilometers (11-12 miles) away from the city.Earlier, an elite unit of the Syrian Army, called the Tiger Forces, came within 18 kilometers (11 miles) of the besieged city after destroying IS (Islamic State, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorist positions on the Bishri mountain chain, Al-Masdar News reported Despite massive redeployment of fighters and military hardware by the Islamic State terrorists from other parts of Iraq and Syria to Deir ez-Zor, the Syrian Army, with the help of the Russian Air Force, has been advancing toward the city on several fronts.The key Euphrates city of Deir ez-Zor has been under terrorist siege for two and a half years, after being cut off from government-held areas in May 2015 during the jihadists' offensive on Palmyra. The surrounded city, alongside a neighboring military base and airfield, have since been supplied with food and ammunition via airdrops by Russian and Syrian transport planes and helicopters.On Sunday, the Syrian Army attacked IS barricades on the southwestern outskirts of the city, Sana news agency reported, killing several terrorists and seizing their weapons and ammunition."We carried out at dawn a successful raid against one of ISIS terrorists' barricades in the direction of the Water Resources area through crawling and infiltrating it and throwing several bombs when we almost approached the area, killing all the terrorists at the site," one of the soldiers told Sana.The Syrian Army units have also expanded control in al-Badia, "eliminating the last gatherings of the organization in Hreibsha area that is located in the southwest of Deir Ezzor province."The Russian Defense Ministry has previously stated that breaking the blockade of Deir ez-Zor will mark the defeat of the last capable grouping of IS terrorists in Syria."ISIL militants are still attempting to stop the advancement of the Syrian troops by relocating to the Deir ez-Zor region armor, pick-up trucks with high-caliber machine guns mounted on them, weapons and ammunition. They are creating fortifications with positions for artillery and mortars," the Russian Defense Ministry reported Saturday.In response, the Russian forces in Syria intensified airstrikes on the jihadists, destroying their armored vehicles, tanks, artillery positions and supply depots.On Saturday, the Russian Air Force also backed the swift actions of the army and its allies who have liberated the town of Akerbat - considered to be the last major terrorist stronghold in Hama province and central Syria.Lifting the Deir ez-Zor blockade will "provide Syrian armed forces and their allies with a really stable foothold in this part of northeast Syria," geopolitical analyst Patrick Henningsen told RT.The UN's special envoy for Syria, Steffan de Mistura, also expects all major IS positions in Syria to fall by the end of October."What we are seeing is in my opinion the beginning of the end of this war... what we need to make sure is that this becomes also the beginning of peace," de Mistura said on Friday. "And that is where the challenge starts at this very moment."Encouraged by reports that the lifting of the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) blockade of Deir ez-Zor was days away, defenders of the city celebrated the news on Sunday night, as footage from inside the city shows.The video was reportedly shot in the Jura district of the city, which has been besieged by the Islamic State terrorist group since 2014.Syrian government forces are advancing from several directions to break the blockade of the provincial capital, with the Russian Air Force supporting the offensive from the air. </s> Islamic State militants launched their biggest attack in months on government-held areas of the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor on Saturday, leaving dozens of dead, a war monitor said.At least six large explosions rocked the city since dawn as the militants clashed with the army and allied forces, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.Syrian government warplanes hit back against Islamic State positions, the Observatory and state media said.Syrian state news agency SANA said the army was repelling attacks by the ultra-hardline jihadist group along several frontlines, including around the military airport controlled by the government.Islamic State shelling killed three people and wounded nine in residential government-held districts, SANA reported.The fighting and bombardment killed at least 12 government forces and 20 Islamic State fighters, the Observatory said.Islamic State controls most of Deir al-Zor province, which borders Iraq, including more than half the city, and has besieged the remaining government-held areas of the city for nearly two years.The Syrian government and its Russian ally have made regular aid drops into the encircled zone, where about 200,000 people live, lacking food and medicine.Deir al-Zor province links Islamic State's de facto capital in the Syrian city of Raqqa with territory controlled by the militant group in Iraq. </s> Islamic State militants launched their biggest attack in months on government-held areas of the Syrian city of Deir al-Zor on Saturday, leaving dozens dead, a war monitor said. At least six large explosions rocked the city as the militants clashed with government forces, the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

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ISIL's third attack against the Syrian government's forces in the city of Deir ez-Zor reportedly splits the government held area in two. An estimated 14,000 ISIL fighters are participating in the attack according to the government.