On October 13, ISIS fighters recaptured 5 positions north of the Jafra oil field in the northern Deir Ezzor countryside from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), according to the ISIS-linked news agency Amaq. The source added that ISIS fighters killed 9 SDF members and captured many weapons during their counter-attack.
Meanwhile, Kurdish sources reported that the SDF repelled other attacks of ISIS on its positions around al-Suwar town in the northern Deir Ezzor countryside, and Markada town in the southern al-Hasakah countryside. The sources said that SDF fighters killed 6 ISIS members and destroyed 6 mortars of ISIS. Moreover, 3 SDF fighters were killed while repelling ISIS attack.
In a related development, US Army Colonel Ryan Dillon Spokesman for the US-led coalition in Syria said the negotiations between the SDF’s Raqqa Civil Council and local Arab leaders to evacuate civilians from Raqqa is still ongoing. Colonel Dillon denied that the US-led coalition is blocking a deal between the SDF and locals in Raqqa city.
#SDF, Raqqa Civ. Council & local Arab leaders cont. talks to evacuate civilians from Raqqa; inacccurate reports that #Coalition blocking
— OIR Spokesman (@OIRSpox) 13 October 2017
Colonel Dillon statement confirms that all Kurdish reports that claimed that the SDF is not negotiating with ISIS are false. The SDF battle in Raqqa city will likely end with a deal with ISIS, or at least Syrian ISIS fighters in the city. Clashes inside Raqqa city even slowed down over the last week, which support this scenario.
The ISIS attack on the SDF near the Jafra oil field:
