The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that the clashes occurred in the town of Ayyash, west of Deir ez-Zor and on both banks of the Euphrates River, using machine guns and mortar shells.
The banks separate the areas under the control of the Syrian regime and those under the control of the SDF. The area is characterized by frequent smuggling operations, due to the difference in price of goods on either side.
The SDF, who control northeast Syria (Rojava), has been the main ally of the US-led global coalition in the war against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria. The forces arrested thousands of the group’s fighters along with their wives and children when they defeated ISIS territorially and took the group’s last stronghold in Syria in 2019.
The watchdog on Tuesday reported that at least 16 pro-Iran militiamen were killed in unidentified airstrikes in Deir ez-Zor. Damascus blamed Washington for the attack, but the Pentagon denied responsibility later in the day.
US forces have in recent months carried out several rounds of retaliatory strikes on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) positions in Syria following a series of attacks by Iran-backed militia groups on American bases in the country and neighboring Iraq.
