Damascus, Aug 30 (UNI) Deadly infighting broke out between two United States-backed militias in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al-Zour, killing 18 people and injuring 15 others, a war monitor reported on Tuesday.
On Monday, clashes erupted in Deir al-Zour between the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Deir al-Zour Military Council, an Arab-majority militia that used to operate under the umbrella of SDF, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, noting that the two factions had once jointly combated the Islamic State (IS) militias.
The killed included two civilians, ten fighters associated with the military council, and six SDF fighters, according to the UK-based watchdog group.
The tension between the two sides escalated after the SDF detained Ahmad Abu Khawla, the leader of the military council, in the northeastern province of Hasakah over his alleged ties with the Syrian government and Turkiye, a stand against the SDF.
The observatory warned that the ongoing clashes could potentially escalate into a wider Arab-Kurdish conflict within the region.
Notably, the SDF has emerged as the main allied militia to the U.S. forces in northeastern Syria, controlling much of Hasakah and parts of Deir al-Zour’s countryside.
Due to its de-facto rule in Hasakah and some other areas in Deir al-Zour and Aleppo, the Syrian government has branded the SDF as a separatist group.
For Turkiye, the SDF is part of the Kurdish People Protection Units, which Ankara designates as a terrorist group due to its ties with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
