BEIRUT, September 24 (RIA Novosti) – Damascus confirmed Wednesday that the international coalition fighting terrorism had conducted airstrikes on Islamic State (IS) militant positions in Syria's Deir Ezzor province on the border with Iraq, Syrian Arab News Agency SANA has reported.
According to earlier reports, the aircraft of the US -led coalition carried out more than five air raids Wednesday morning in Deir Ezzor, attacking terrorist camps on the Syrian-Iraqi border and the Syrian border town of Al-Bukamal.
Earlier this week, the United States and its Arab allies started carrying out airstrikes against various terrorist groups in Syria. Washington said it had notified Syria about the strikes in advance; however, it had not requested Damascus' permission for military action, as it considers the presidency of Bashar Assad to be illegitimate.
The Islamic State (IS) insurgent group has seized large parts of Iraq and Syria and proclaimed a caliphate state in June. Following the group's rapid advance in northern Iraq, Washington launched airstrikes against the IS fighters on Iraqi territory in August and later extended the operation to Syria.
