Landmine explosion injures Syrian government soldiers in Deir ez-Zor
DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria (North Press) – Four soldiers of Syrian government forces injured, on Sunday, in a landmine explosion in the village of Ma’ezila, in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor Governorate, eastern Syria.
A source of the government forces in Deir ez-Zor told North Press that four soldiers of Division 17, affiliated with the government forces, were injured while scouring Deir ez-Zor countryside.
The source said that following the incident, the wounded soldiers were transferred to the city hospital in Deir ez-Zor, and they are in “serious condition”.
“Soldiers who participated in the scouring campaign left their weapons and run away, fearing landmines and Islamic State (ISIS) attacks, the source pointed out.
On August 11, ISIS claimed responsibility for an attack against buses of the government forces in the countryside of the town of al-Mayadin, east of Deir ez-Zor. The attack killed 40 Syrian soldiers and wounded more than 10 others.
The Syrian Desert covers nearly half of the area of Syria, and is distributed over the governorates of Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, Aleppo, Homs, Hama, Rif Dimashq, Suwayda and Palmyra.
Iranian-backed militias and the government forces control large areas of the Syrian Desert and the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, which constitutes a source of concern as it witnesses intensive operations by the ISIS sleeper cells.