US-led coalition aircraft hit a Syrian army position in the country’s east on Saturday (Sept 17), according to an armed forces statement carried by the state news agency Sana.
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A statement from the Syrian defense ministry accused the U.S. coalition of targeting its troops in the area near the Deir el-Zour airport around 5 p.m. local time, leading to a “loss of lives and material”.
The source at the airport said the air strike had paved the way for Islamic State fighters to overun the position at Jebel Tharda, the Observatory said.
The Russian army said 60 Syrian soldiers were killed in US-led coalition strikes.
“Straight after the coalition’s strikes, IS militants launched an offensive”, said the statement, adding that “fierce fighting against the terrorists” ensued nearby.
Using the Arabic acronym for ISIS, the Syrian military said the incident was “firm proof of the United States support of Daesh and other terrorist groups”.
The United States and Russian Federation agreed a deal on Syria last week, involving a ceasefire which came into effect on Monday, aid deliveries to besieged areas and eventual joint targeting of militant jihadist groups if the truce works out.
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The incident marks the first USA -led attack on a government forces’ positions since the coalition started striking IS positions in Syria in late 2014.
