Unidentified warplanes, believed to be the US, conducted airstrikes targeting key positions of militias supported by Iran in various areas of Deir Ezzor province, eastern Syria, early Tuesday morning. The extent of damage from the strikes remains unclear.
According to local sources in Deir Ezzor, the airstrikes hit scattered locations across the province, with a focus on cities including Bukamal, al-Mayadeen, and Deir Ezzor itself. The raids aimed at vital sites used by Iranian-backed militias, including villages such as al-Suwayiyyah and al-Salihiyah. Additionally, a building near the presidency of Euphrates University, serving as a militia headquarters, was targeted. Strikes also occurred in the Villas neighborhood in central Deir Ezzor.
Video footage posted on Facebook by the Deir Ezzor 24 website purported to show aftermath scenes from what it described as a “US raid” targeting a building used by Iranian militias near the university presidency building.
Local reports indicate that a prominent leader within the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), identified as Al-Haj Askar, sustained serious injuries during one of the airstrikes in the village of Sukariyah west of Bukamal city. Askar oversees Iranian militia activities in Bukamal and its environs and reports to another Iranian commander known as Al-Haj Mahdi.
The city of Bukamal holds strategic significance for Iranian militias due to its proximity to the Iraqi border and its control over the al-Qaim crossing, a crucial passage linking Syria with Iraq and serving as a conduit for Iranian influence. While the Syrian regime has yet to comment on the airstrikes, local Sham FM radio reported a “US aggression” targeting several points in Deir Ezzor, Mayadeen, and Bukamal.
In contrast, Al-Mayadeen TV, affiliated with Tehran and based in Beirut, claimed American airstrikes hit Salihiyah in Bukamal and residential neighborhoods in Mayadeen and Deir Ezzor’s al-Qusur area, resulting in casualties. The exact number of casualties remains undisclosed.
London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported seven fatalities among Iranian militia members as a preliminary count, with additional unconfirmed reports of a militia leader’s death in the Villas neighborhood. This recent incident echoes previous airstrikes in eastern Deir Ezzor, near the Syrian-Iraqi border, an area characterized by smuggling operations and arms transfers, often facilitating Iranian interests.
