ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - At least 43 people, mostly civilians, were killed as a result of separate Islamic State (ISIS) attacks in Syria, a war monitor reported on Sunday.
According to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), at least 19 civilians and 17 members of the pro-government National Defense Forces were killed by ISIS militants in the west-central Syrian city of Hama, while they were searching for truffles.
The militant group also killed an additional seven civilians, including five shepherds, in Syria's eastern Deir ez-Zor province on the same day, said the war monitor.
Despite repeated warnings from authorities, hundreds of poverty-stricken Syrians venture into the Badia desert between February and April each year in search of truffles. The desert is known to be a hideout for jihadists and also contains landmines, making it a high-risk area to search for the delicious delicacy.
The Syrian desert is known for producing some of the highest quality truffles in the world, which can fetch up to $25 per kilogram, in a country where the average monthly wage is only around $18.
Over 230 people have been killed in ISIS attacks targeting truffle hunters since February. At least 68 truffle hunters were killed in an ISIS ambush in central Syria’s Homs on February 17.
After their territorial defeat in March 2019 to a military operation led by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and backed by a United States-led global coalition, ISIS militants have carried out hit and run attacks on civilians and military targets of both the Syrian regime and the Kurdish-led authority in the northwest of the country.
In its propaganda magazine on Thursday, ISIS claimed to have conducted five attacks in Syria from April 6 to April 12, killing and injuring seven people.
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