DAMASCUS, July 10 (Xinhua) -- Battles between the Syrian army and the Islamic State (IS) group renewed on Friday in the desert region in the eastern part of the country, a war monitor reported.
The battles renewed in the town of Sukhneh in the remote eastern countryside of Homs province near the administrative border of the eastern province of Deir al-Zour, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Britain-based watchdog group said Russian warplanes were raiding the IS positions while the battles were ongoing with no reports on casualties yet.
On July 7, the observatory said the IS militants were launching attacks on the Syrian army positions in a triangle of areas combining countryside areas of Aleppo, Hama, and Raqqa provinces in northern Syria.
It said 601 Syrian and pro-government soldiers have been killed in the battles with IS militants in the desert since March. It added that 256 IS militants have been killed as well.
After losing key areas across the country, the IS now has a presence in the Syrian desert region in the remote eastern countryside of Homs province and Deir al-Zour province. Enditem
