Hard road ahead as the Syrian Army enters ISIL’s heartland: map

ISIL has lost a great deal of territory to the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) this year; however, the terrorist group is far from finished inside the country.

Speaking to a Syrian Army officer in Deir Ezzor, Al-Masdar was told that the Islamic State’s defenses along the Euphrates River are heavily fortified and well-protected by a large number of tribal fighters from local villages around this province in eastern Syria.

Making matters worse for the government forces, the Islamic State is heavily resisting their advances in southeastern Al-Raqqa and eastern Homs, launching counter-attacks late at night to drive back the Syrian Army units.

With the Syrian Army inching closer to both Al-Sukhnah (Homs) and Ma’adan (Al-Raqqa), their advances will prove far more strenuous and costly as they push deeper into the Islamic State’s heartland in eastern Syria.