An offensive by the Islamic State jihadist group in eastern Syria has left at least 45 pro-regime fighters dead, a monitoring group said Tuesday. IS fighters launched the operation Sunday against Euphrates Valley villages seized last year by government forces and their allies, and have retaken four of them, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Near those villages is the small town of Hajin, the single largest populated hub still under the control of IS jihadists. Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said at least 26 IS fighters were also killed since “fierce” fighting started on Sunday. The Observatory said the casualties on the pro-regime side were mostly fighters from Shiite militias present in the area, including groups from Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon’s Hezbollah.

Source: Hindustan Times June 05, 2018 12:22 UTC