TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) fighters have down a Syrian fighter jet at Deir Az-Zour Province in Syria's east on Sunday. The downing marks the first successful attempt by ISIS to down a military jet since the hardline Islamist group took control over large swathes of Syrian territories.The fighter jet was seen to have crashed on one of Deir Az-Zour's hills after it was shot by ISIS fighters, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. According to the Observatory, the plane was flying above Deir Az-Zour as a part of the Syrian Air Force's offensive against ISIS bases in Hwaijat As-Saqer, near Deir Az-Zour, which began at midnight, local time.
According to local media reports quoted by Xinhua on Monday, at least 16 ISIS fighters have been killed and injured as a result of the military's airstrikes.
Meanwhile, at least 25 Syrian soldiers perish daily due to ambushes launched by the al-Qaeda-affiliated An-Nusra Front fighters, near the town of Zabdin, east of Damascus. It was reported that the ambushes have effectively halted the advances of Syria's army into rebel held territories.
The Syrian crisis have gone on for more than three and a half years without any indications of improvement in the horizon. The complexity of the crisis was compounded by the fact that a number of fanatical groups are taking advantage of the ensuing chaos to further their own, separate causes.
To date, around 190,000 people have been killed in the conflict, while millions of Syrians have been displaced from their homes - forcing them to seek refuge in neighbouring countries.
ANTARA | UNGGUL TRI RATOMO
