Unknown attackers hit house of oil wells investor in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor
DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria (North press) – Unknown assailants targeted on Friday the house of an investor of oil wells in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, eastern Syria, with missiles and machineguns.
Muhammad al-Samhan, a resident of the town of Diban eastern Deir ez-Zor, told North Press that unknown assailants, riding motorcycles, targeted with two missiles the house of Muhammad al-Hebel, an oil well investor, in Hawi neighborhood in the town.
Al-Samhan added that clashes with machineguns erupted between the attackers and the house owners for over 20 minutes, forcing the attackers to withdraw.
The attack and clashes resulted in material losses only, according to al-Samhan.
He cited relatives of al-Hebel as saying that the latter had been successively threatened by militants of the Islamic State (ISIS) for not paying Zakat. The group is said to be behind the attack.
Although the SDF launches intensive security operations, the countryside of Deir ez-Zor has recently witnessed an increase in killing incidents carried out against SDF members, employees of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), tribal figures and civil residents.
The SDF keeps pursuing ISIS sleeper cells in Deir ez-Zor eastern countryside with the aim to maintain security and stability of the region.
ISIS lost its final stronghold in Syria in March 2019. The SDF, with the support of the US-led Global Coalition, defeated ISIS after fierce battles in the town of Baghouz in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, bringing an end to the so-called caliphate declared by the terrorist ISIS.