Hundreds of civilians, fighters flee IS stronghold in Syria

Hundreds of people have fled the Islamic State group’s last major stronghold in Syria, including fighters who tried to sneak out among civilians, Syrian opposition activists say.

The Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed and Kurdish-led group, has intensified its offensive in the last area held by the extremists since US President Donald Trump announced plans to withdraw American troops last month. The ground offensive is taking place under the cover of airstrikes by the US-led coalition.

Despite the intensity of the offensive and the airstrikes some IS fighters holed up in two villages are refusing to surrender and have continued to inflict losses among the attacking forces while using civilians as human shields.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says some 2,000 people, including 300 IS gunmen, have left the area in the eastern province of Deir el-Zour since yesterday. It says many of those who left are from Iraq and the former Soviet Union.

Rami Abdurrahman, the director of the Observatory, says a search is underway for any senior IS commanders who might be in the area.

The DeirEzzor 24, an activist collective, reports that dozens of civilians have left the area, adding that the SDF captured a local IS commander and his bodyguard.

— AP