Su-25 aircrafts in Syria. FILE IMAGE: Vadim Grishankin/Russian Defense Ministry Press and Information Office/TASS
On February 21, five fighters of the pro-government Baqir Brigade we killed in Syria’s central region when they stumbled on a landmine that was planted by ISIS cells.
The incident took place in the Homs desert, which lays between the eastern countryside of Homs and the western Deir Ezzor countryside. The desert area is ISIS main stronghold in the central region.
The five victims of the landmine incident, Ahmed Abdel Fattah Al Jassim and brothers Abdo, Haitham, Mohamed, Nouri and Saleh Nuri Faraj Hamalo. Photos via Facebook.
A day after the incident, warplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces carried out more than 100 airstrikes on ISIS hideouts in the Homs desert.
Furthermore, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and other pro-government formations deployed additional forces around the Homs desert to comb the area and clear any landmines or improvised explosive devices.
ISIS cells in central Syria have been laying low for the last few weeks to avoid Russian warplanes and government forces. Despite this, a few attacks were reported. On February 20, two soldiers of the SAA were killed when several terrorists attacked a post they were manning in the western desert of Deir Ezzor.
The situation in central Syria appears to be slowly improving. However, more time and efforts are still needed to fully neutralize ISIS cells in the region.
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