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US airstrikes in Deir ez-Zor "open aggression" — Syrian command

The Syrian Armed Forces' command said that the Islamic State terrorist organization "took advantage of the US aviation’s airstrikes and captured the line of defense on the Jebel-Sarda mountain"

BEIRUT, September 17. /TASS/. Syrian Armed Forces’ command has assessed the US airstrikes at government forces’ positions near Deir ez-Zor as "a dangerous and open aggression."

The statement quoted by the SANA news agency said that the Islamic State (IS) terrorist organization "took advantage of the US aviation’s airstrikes and captured the line of defense on the Jebel-Sarda mountain," which is close to the military aerodrome that serves as the main base of Syrian government forces on the approaches to Deir ez-Zor.

"As a result of US Air Force’s airstrikes, the Syrian forces sustained losses in personnel and equipment, which helped terrorists to seize military positions," the Syrian command noted.

"This attack serves as convincing evidence that the United States and their allies support IS and other gangs under the false pretext of fighting against terrorism. They (US) become like Israel which delivered an airstrike today at the positions of Syrian artillery in Khan-Arnaba near the city of Quneitra (40 kilometers from Damascus) and thus helped militants from Jebhat Fath al-Sham (Jebhat al-Nusra terrorist organization)," the Syrian army said.

The Syrian command stressed that "the anti-terrorist coalition’s aviation has made thousands of sorties since 2014 but was still unable to stop the expansion of IS and to achieve a meaningful result in Syria and Iraq." "This means that the US approach in the war against terrorist groups is not serious, and that there is no coordination with governments in Damascus and Baghdad," the statement concluded.