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WORLD NEWS Saturday 7 OctOber 2017

Assad’s forces push into key IS stronghold in eastern Syria

Syrian forces and allied mi- in the city of Deir el-Zour on
litiamen entered western Thursday evening.
parts of Mayadeen, includ- In central Syria, the attack
ing the town’s wheat silos on the village of Abu Dali
compound and the sheep in Hama province was led
market.The Russian state by al-Qaida-linked Hay’at
RIA Novosti news agency Tahrir al Sham — Arabic for
quoted a Syrian army gen- Levant Liberation Commit-
eral as saying that the Syr- tee and also known as HTS.
ian forces have fought their It came two weeks after in-
way into Mayadeen. The surgents attacked a nearby
agency quoted the un- area where three Russian
identified officer as saying soldiers were wounded.
that the army entered the Earlier this week, Russia’s
western neighborhoods of military claimed the lead-
the town on Friday.Syria’s er of the al-Qaida-linked
state news agency SANA group was wounded in a
said troops killed many Russian airstrike and had
IS fighters on the western fallen into a coma. The mili-
This image purports to show an Islamic State fighter firing his weapon during clashes with Syrian outskirts of Mayadeen and tary offered no evidence
troop in the eastern Syrian province of Deir el-Zour. The Arabic caption reads, “The incursion of captured western parts of on the purported condi-
Sheikh Abu Mohammed al-Adnani may God give him mercy. Striking at Nusayris with shells (Nu- the town. The Russian De- tion of Abu Mohammed
sayri is a derogative term for Alawites).” fense Ministry announced al-Golani.The al-Qaida-
(militant photo via AP) its submarines fired 10 linked group subsequently
By BASSEM MROUE Mediterranean, activists extremist group, which has cruise missiles on Thursday denied al-Golani was hurt,
VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and officials said. lost wide areas of Iraq and at IS positions outside of insisting he is in excellent
Associated Press The push into the town of Syria in its self-declared ca- Mayadeen. health and going about his
BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian gov- Mayadeen came as al- liphate over the past year. Airstrikes on the town duties as usual. The group’s
ernment forces pushed into Qaida-linked fighters at- Fierce battles are still ex- and nearby areas over fighters have been gain-
one of the last remaining tacked a key central Syrian pected in the town that the past days have killed ing more influence in the
urban strongholds of the village at the crossroads over the past months be- and wounded scores of northwestern province of
Islamic State group in the between areas under gov- came one of the extrem- people, including 15 civil- Idlib and northern parts of
country’s east on Friday, ernment control and those ists’ main centers after los- ians — women and chil- Hama, where they have
following days of fierce controlled by insurgents, ing other strongholds in Iraq dren among them — who launched attacks on rival
fighting and intense Rus- activists said. and Syria.According to the were killed when a missile militant groups, as well as
sian airstrikes that involved Taking Mayadeen would Britain-based Syrian Obser- slammed into a govern- areas controlled by the
cruise missiles from the mark another blow to the vatory for Human Rights, ment-held neighborhood government.q
Libyan force seizes control of migrant smuggling hub

CAIRO (AP) — A Libyan statement that they and Following a popular up- grant boats to the country. backlash from other local
armed group on Friday their allies have taken con- rising in 2011 that has Under the deal, the flow of militias, who feared the em-
claimed victory over Ital- trol of the city from the Mar- plunged the country into migrants has significantly powerment of the al-Am-
ian-backed militias paid to tyr Anas al-Dabashi (better chaos, Libya has become dropped since July com- mu and Brigade 48 militias
stem the flow of migrants known as al-Ammu’s) and a main migrant transit point pared to the previous year. at their expense. Neither
to Europe from the coastal Brigade 48 militias. The to Europe as traffickers The U.N. migration agency militia could be reached
city of Sabratha, a major weeks-long battle killed have exploited the security says more than 139,000 mi- for comment.
launch pad for the perilous dozens and displaced vacuum. grants and refugees have All factions involved in
voyage across the Mediter- thousands of families. Over the summer, the two arrived in Europe by sea the weeks-long battle are
ranean. The Sabratha Municipal militias struck a deal with since the start of 2017 to nominally under the control
The Anti-ISIS Operations Council confirmed the Italy through the U.N.- Oct. 4, less than half the the GNA, headed by Fayez
Room, created last year to city’s capture and con- backed Government of figure recorded during the Serraj, which hailed Friday’s
clear Sabratha of Islamic gratulated the AIOR on its National Accord to stop same period last year. developments in Sabratha
State militants, said in a victory. facilitating the flow of mi- But the deal triggered a as “positive.” q