US-backed force planning council to run Syrian city

Forces backed by US and Russia agree on a ‘de-confliction line’ to prevent clashes

Tribal figures linked to a US-backed alliance announced plans yesterday for a council to run Syria’s Deir Al Zor, as both the alliance and regime troops battle militants in and around the city.

Held by Daesh, the city is the capital of the eastern province of Deir Al Zor, regarded as a strategic prize by both Syrian troops and the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

With Russian backing, Syrian regime forces have seized western parts of the province and breached Daesh’s yearslong siege on parts of the city.

SDF fighters are waging a separate offensive that has captured swaths of territory from Daesh east of the Euphrates River, which cuts across the province.

The SDF has not reached Deir Al Zor city itself, but yesterday its media office said a “preparatory committee” would begin laying the groundwork for a civil council to run the city after the terrorist outfit’s defeat.

Local figures would announce “the preparatory committee of the Deir Al Zor Civil Council and the support of the tribes for the SDF,” the media office said in a statement.

Preparing offensive

It remained unclear whether the Deir Al Zor Civil Council would coordinate with, or rival, government authorities already present in other parts of the city. The coalition, the SDF, Syria’s government and Russia have agreed on a “deconfliction line” in northeastern Syria to prevent the two offensives from clashing.

Since 2014, Daesh has held swathes of the province and about 60 per cent of its capital. Government troops have broken both militant sieges and were preparing yesterday to launch an offensive on the eastern districts still held by Daesh.