Late on March 17, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) repelled a large-scale attack by ISIS cells in the country’s central region.
According to the al-Watan newspaper, the attack targeted the outskirt of the town of al-Sukhnah and the T3 station in the eastern Homs countryside as well as the strategic M20 highway, which links Homs with the eastern governorate of Deir Ezzor.
SAA units targeted the attackers with heavy machine guns and artillery fire, forcing them to retreat within a few hours. Al-Watan claimed that the terrorists sustained heavy losses in the failed attack.
Click to see full-size map. Source: (@Suriyakmaps) on Twitter.
Meanwhile, opposition sources told Germany’s DPA news agency that 20 Syrian soldiers were killed in the attack. The sources claimed that many others service members were captured by ISIS terrorists.
These claims may be false. Pro-government sources have not reported any losses in the SAA’s ranks in central Syria, so far.
ISIS cells in central Syrian, mainly in the Homs desert, stepped up their attacks in the last few months. The terrorists made several attempts to block the Homs-Deir Ezzor highway, all were foiled by the SAA.
