NDF fighters and senior ISIS leader apprehended in Deir Ezzor

A fighter with the Syrian regime-backed National Defence Forces (NDF) who disguised himself as a ‘tribal’ member fighting in Deir Ezzor has confessed. According to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) media center, he confessed that he was ordered by the group’s leaders to fight against the SDF in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor under the guise of ‘tribes’. The man, Ghiath Juma Sahoor, originally from the Damascus countryside, was captured in the town of al-Busaira during Operation Security Reinforcement.

Sahoor told the SDF: “While I was in Damascus, I came into contact with a man called Abu Basil Diaa/Ghazi from the NDF in Deir Ezzor. He offered me to join his group and I accepted. While I was a part of that group, I became acquainted with another person named Ali Ramadan Khalaf from al-Busaira town. Following the directives of Commander Abu Basil, Ali and I crossed the Euphrates river into an area known as al-Jazeera. When conflicts arose, I was in the town of al-Busaira.”

Sahoor continued that he was forced to join the fight against the SDF under the guise of “tribes” on the orders of his group’s commander, adding that he was captured by the SDF in the town of al-Busaira while participating in the clashes. The SDF concluded its statement by saying that the SDF forces managed to capture several members of the Syrian regime-backed NDF during combing operations, despite the Syrian regime’s claims that the individuals responsible for combating the SDF and causing unrest, looting, arson and destruction of public facilities in some villages and towns in the eastern countryside of Deir Ezzor are affiliated to local “tribes”. 

Senior ISIS leader arrested in al-Busaira town

In another statement, the SDF announced that SDF forces had captured a senior ISIS leader responsible for funding ISIS terrorist cells in the region. He was arrested in the area during a sweep in the town of al-Busaira. The SDF declared in its statement: “Acting on accurate intelligence, our SDF operational units raided the hideout of terrorist Yahya Ahmed al-Haji, also known as Abu Bara’a al-Hasan. Al-Hajji, originally from the town of Al-Safira, serves as the financial officer of ISIS’s so-called Levant State and holds a senior position in ISIS’s so-called Military Command Council. He also previously served as an assistant to the terrorist Mamoun Al-Shami, the head of ISIS’s financial authority during its control of Deir Ezzor and Raqqa. Al-Hajji has recently been actively involved in funding terrorist cells, orchestrating their attacks and recruiting financiers.”