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Tribal fighters attacked the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the eastern governorate of Deir Ezzor on September 25, confirming that the Arab armed uprising against the Kurdish-led group which began last month is still ongoing.
The attack targeted the key town of Diban, which is located on the western bank of the Euphrates River in the southeastern Deir Ezzor countryside.
Sheikh Ibrahim al-Hafel, a prominent figure of the influential Al Uqaydat tribe who rose to become the leader of the Arab armed uprising in Deir Ezzor, announced the beginning of the attack in a voice message that was shared on social media, calling for a “popular mobilization” against the SDF.
In the first few hours of the attacks, tribal fighters managed to enter Diban and nearby areas after capturing several checkpoints and positions of the SDF.
The group alleged in an initial statement that the attack was launched from the government-held eastern Euphrates bank and that tribal fighters received artillery support from the Syrian Arab Army (SAA). These claims were backed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a London-based pro-opposition monitoring group.
Clashes in Diban came to an end on September 26 with the SDF announcing that it had repelled the attack of the “Syrian regime mercenaries”.
In a statement, the group said that 20 of tribal fighters were killed and 31 others were wounded during the battle. It also claimed that some of the wounded were evacuated to government hospitals on the eastern Euphrates bank.
From its side, the SOHR said that the battle claimed the lives of 21 tribal fighters and three others from the SDF. According to the monitoring group, 26 tribal fighters, 12 from the SDF and four civilians were also wounded.
Despite the reports of the SAA involvement, the United State-led coalition, who maintains two bases at the Conoco gas plant in the eastern Deir Ezzor countryside and al-Omar oil fields in the southern countryside of the governorate, didn’t intervene in the clashes.
The armed uprising in Deir Ezzor broke out on August 27 after the SDF arrested Rashid Abu Khawla, the leader of its largest Arab faction, the Deir Ezzor Military Council, and launched a crackdown in the governorate with support from the coalition.
While the arrest of Abu Khawala, a former ISIS leader who was known for his criminal activities, was the direct cause of the uprising, tensions between the Arab population in Deir Ezzor and the SDF have been mounting for years as the group worked to expand Kurdish influence in the historically Arab governorate.
The last attack on Diban, which was more of a large-scale raid, affirmed that the armed uprising is still ongoing. The SDF has clearly failed to end the uprising with military means and its efforts to calm down the Arab population in Deir Ezzor have been also unsuccessful. The support of the government for the uprising, if confirmed, will pose a serious challenge to the U.S.-led coalition, which does not appear to be interested in a conflict with Arab tribes.
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as i said before, the sdf has missed the boat on this, i.e. cooperate with asad-government forces for a common syria. i‘ve talked to a number of ppl by now, including members of the two major tribes involved. they regret fighting the sdf with whom they formerly cooperated while fighting daesh. however, infringements where too many to be tolerated. especially into what tribes consider to be their internal affairs (always a very sensitive point).
the sdf threw their lot in with the us gangsters a long time ago now they will pay for it.
good work boys, wipe those sdf collaborators out, russia should arm those arabs with weapons so they can fight the us gangsters if they get involved.
už by bolo na čase konečne oslobodiť celú sýriu!!! a to aj od okupantov z usa!!!