The Syrian Army has recaptured Deir al-Zour from the Islamic State group, its last major stronghold in the war-torn country, state TV reported on Thursday, according to the BBC. “The city is completely liberated from terrorism,” the report said.
Deir al-Zour was of strategic importance to the terror group as it is located close to the Iraqi border in the east. The Islamic State group had taken control of it in 2014.
While there was no official confirmation of the news, monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, too, said government troops had driven Islamic State fighters out of Deir al-Zour.
The development comes weeks after the Syrian Democratic Forces, backed by the United States-led coalition recaptured Raqqa from the Islamic State group after an offensive that went on for four months. The terror outfit had declared Raqqa its headquarters after taking control of it early in 2014.
The Islamic State group lost its Iraqi stronghold in Mosul in July. In the nine months of fighting that preceded this victory in Iraq, more than a million people were killed, thousands of civilians were displaced, and large parts of the city was destroyed.
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