Victory for Assad: Syrian army breaks ISIS siege

BEIRUT — The Syrian army broke a three-year siege by the Islamic State on an enclave of the eastern Syrian city of Deir al-Zour on Tuesday, offering a fresh boost to the fortunes of President Bashar Assad and his once-flagging army.

After weeks of fierce fighting along the desert roads stretching east toward the city, Syrian soldiers trundled into the besieged garrison of soldiers at a base known as Brigade 137 early Tuesday and then moved on to a cluster of nearby neighborhoods, where they were greeted by wildly cheering residents.

The victory also set the stage for a global race to control the rest of the desert province, also named Deir al-Zour.

The Syrian army was aided in the fight by Iranian-backed militias, as well as by Russian advisers and Russian airstrikes.

On Tuesday, Russia’s Defense Ministry said that one of its warships in the eastern Mediterranean had fired cruise missiles into the area in support of the Syrian army.

The success of a Russian cease-fire initiative creating deescalation zones around rebelcontrolled areas has also helped free up government forces to focus on the Islamic State-held areas in the country’s east.

The army’s success there will also give a boost to the Syrian government’s intensive efforts in recent months to recruit the support of tribes in the area, reinforcing its bid to wrest back the remainder of the province.