DAMASCUS, Aug. 18 (Xinhua) -- The Islamic State (IS) militants launched an overnight attack on a base of the U.S.-led coalition in the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, a war monitor reported on Saturday.
At least 20 fighters with IS attacked housing units in the al-Omar field in the eastern countryside of Deir al-Zour overnight Friday, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The attack lasted till Saturday morning, during which intense confrontation took place between the IS fighters and forces of the coalition and the allied Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said the report.
The coalition warplanes took part in confronting the attack and had a big role in foiling it, said the Britain-based watchdog group. It added that the attack was the largest on that base since the oil field was turned into a coalition base nearly a year ago.
Seven IS militants were killed in the clashes according to the information of losses among the coalition soldiers, said the observatory.
The coalition forces started combing the area in search for IS militants around the base, which houses around 500 coalition forces and SDF fighters.
In October of last year, the coalition captured the al-Omar oil field and turned it into its largest military base in Syria as that position contains massive military gears, missile launchers, and anti-aircraft batteries, according to the observatory.
The IS militants are still holding pockets in the eastern countryside of Deir al-Zour as the SDF and the coalition are working to dislodge IS from that area.
