## ISIS Hostage Rescue Op Reveals More Evidence of US Arming & Protecting ISIS in Syria, as US Stands Between the Syrian Army & Total ISIS Defeat in the Country
(*Photo: SANA, [source](https://www.english.almanar.com.lb/617322). These women & children are among 19 Syrians who were rescued from ISIS by the Syrian Army on Thursday, after being kidnapped and held hostage for over 3 months since July 25.*)
([*source*](https://southfront.org/us-held-area-of-at-tanf-once-again-appears-to-be-isis-welcome-zone-in-syria/))
As the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and its allies continue to successfully battle ISIS and eliminate the Daesh terrorists from the country, it is becoming more and more apparent that one of the only things standing in the way of the total defeat of the Islamic State in Syria right now is the US occupation and its 'terrorist protection zones' there. The SAA has been waging several offensive fronts against the remaining ISIS cells in Syria simultaneously, and a major breakthrough was just achieved on November 8 with the rescue of 19 hostages the terrorist group had been using as human shields for over three months.
At least 30 women and children were abducted during a [massive terrorist assault on al-Sweida which killed hundreds of Syrians including over 130 civilians on July 25](https://steemit.com/news/@jasonliberty/deadly-isis-terrorist-attacks-sweep-through-syrian-villages-killing-and-injuring-hundreds), carried out by an ISIS cell operating out of the al-Safa desert nearby. The SAA then soon launched a military operation to eliminate the small but well-fortified ISIS pocket in al-Safa, but this advance was greatly hindered by the use of the civilian hostages as human shields by ISIS, and it moved very slowly due to the SAA's cautious determination to rescue the hostages alive. Several of the hostages were subsequently executed during this time.
In October, the SAA was able to successfully negotiate the release of six of the hostages, but then negotiations began to quickly break down and the SAA resumed its military operations. Now, well over two months after initially launching the offensive on al-Safa, the SAA has finally managed to free the remaining hostages during a special rescue operation carried out by the Syrian Special Forces with the participation of Russian Special Forces. Strangely enough, the hostages weren't rescued from anywhere near al-Safa, a point of interest we will return to shortly. 19 civilians were rescued in the "heroic military operation," 4 women and 15 Druze children, finally free!
(*[Screenshots](https://southfront.org/in-special-operation-syrian-army-free-remaining-al-suwayda-hostages-from-isis-video/): [SANA video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=78&v=Fs5vrarpkyc) of the rescued hostages. Among the 15 rescued Druze children is the little girl pictured above, being held by a soldier of the Syrian alliance making her smile.*)
All were happy to be heading safely home after months of captivity, and were given a warm welcome upon their return.
(*Photo: [SANA](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150641). Freed abductees reunited with their families on November 9.*)
The Russian Defense Ministry [confirmed](http://tass.com/defense/1030050) that its forces had taken part in the rescue operation, and a Syrian field commander noted that the operation was conducted following accurate information on the location of the hostages being obtained, and their locations carefully tracked. The Syrian commander also confirmed there were no losses among Syrian soldiers, and that eight terrorists were killed and one captured in the operation.
>He pointed out the operation resulted in the liberation of all abductees, the death of 8 terrorists, some of whom were foreigners, the arrest of one terrorists, the seizure of 3 vehicles and the destruction of some others. - [*SANA*](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150669)
Now with the hostages finally freed and out of harm's way, the Syrian army will be able to immediately move forward with a much more effective full-scale offensive against the ISIS fortifications in al-Safa, now able to fully utilize all the heavy firepower it had been hesitant to unleash before it was certain the area was clear of civilians. The SAA's 4th Division arrived in the al-Safa area to aid in the offensive, and on Thursday the SAA and its allies had already [managed to advance 500 meters deep](https://southfront.org/syrian-army-destroys-isis-fortifications-and-advances-in-al-safa/) into the heavily fortified ISIS pocket, supported by heavy rocket launchers of the 4th Division. At the same time, [Russian Special Forces were also deployed to the area](https://southfront.org/russian-special-forces-syrian-4th-division-arrive-in-al-suwayda-to-launch-attack-on-al-safa/) to aid in the advance, possibly signaling a change in Russian strategy to include more direct on the ground support by Russian forces in the fight to defeat ISIS in Syria.
As to the location of the rescue operation, it does appear strange that the hostages were rescued a whole 280 kilometers northeast of al-Safa in the Humayma area east of Palmyra. A quick look at the map seen above in the cover photo shows that a direct-line path of travel for the ISIS fighters transporting the hostages crosses directly through the US-occupied al-Tanf area which sits on the Iraqi/Jordanian border. This further reinforces the notion that al-Tanf is actively being used as a US 'Terrorist Protection Zone' and an ISIS safe-haven.
>The Russian and Syrian militaries have repeatedly warned that the al-Tanf zone are being used by terrorist groups, including ISIS, as a rear base and a foothold to carry out attacks on government-held areas. The ISIS safe haven is actively protected by US-led coalition forces, which threaten any Syrian Army troops deploying close to the al-Tanf zone. - [*SouthFront*](https://southfront.org/us-held-area-of-at-tanf-once-again-appears-to-be-isis-welcome-zone-in-syria/)
That the 55-km US-protected al-Tanf military zone is being used as an [ISIS safe-haven](https://www.rt.com/news/436710-terrorists-hide-syria-rukban/) has been [well-documented](https://www.rt.com/news/437057-rukban-misinformation-ryan-syria/). Additionally and of even more interest, **the one Daesh terrorist captured in the recent rescue operation revealed that ISIS is indeed being armed and supplied by US forces in al-Tanf.**
>**A terrorist known as “Abu Abdullah Mayadeen” who was arrested during the mission said that Daesh [ISIS] has among its members terrorists from Iraq, Turkey, Ingushetia, Uzbekistan, and India, and that it receives supplies from al-Tanf areas where US forces provided them via intermediaries with ammo, anti-air weapons, Kornet missiles, cars, and food.** - [SANA](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150669)
The Syrian army has continued to seize US weapons from ISIS over the course of the year during successful military advances against the group, so the question is not *if* ISIS is being armed by the US, the question is how. It is also known that so-called 'moderate rebels' of various US-backed militant groups such as "The Lions of The East" have been ["trained and armed by American instructors in a camp near the US military base in al-Tanf."](https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/201809011067667433-syria-government-forces-clashes-militants/) What remained more of a mystery was the full extent of the relationship between the 'moderate' US-backed militant groups at al-Tanf and the 'radical' Jihadi terrorist groups including ISIS and al-Qaeda which the US claims to be stationed in Syria to eradicate.
In a recent discovery on November 1, a [massive ammo cache of 450,000 US-made bullets was recovered from ISIS in the province of Dierr Ezzor near the Euphrates river](https://steemit.com/news/@jasonliberty/more-us-weapons-seized-from-isis-in-syria-huge-ammo-cache-of-us-made-bullets-uncovered-in-deir-ezzor-province-near-euphrates), and **"according to the Syrian state media, this ammunition had been supplied by the US to Syrian militant groups, which then sold it to ISIS."** Now an ISIS terrorist has finally confirmed this reality, offering additional insight into the inner working of the al-Tanf zone as really nothing but a massive US-protected terrorist staging area. This confession also further confirms that the so-called 'moderate' fighters of the opposition militant groups are not the heroic revolutionary fighters the US makes them out to be, but are rather fellow Jihadists working hand in hand with the 'extremist' ISIS and al-Qaeda/al-Nusra terrorists, being used to supply US arms to ISIS under the cover and protection of US occupation forces in al-Tanf.
It is also worth noting that when asked, seeing no difference between ISIS or al-Nusra and 'moderate opposition' fighters, the average Syrian on the ground doesn't typically differentiate between the various opposition militant groups, instead simply referring to all of them as "terrorists". With each new revelation such as this captured ISIS member's confession, it becomes easier and easier to understand why the Syrian people hold this view.
And while the US facade is fading fast, its military presence in Syria is not. This has created a serious problem for the Syrian army and civilians who are now faced with a constant security threat posed by ISIS cells operating out of US-occupied and protected territory. One such ISIS stronghold is in the Rukban refugee camp in the al-Tanf zone along the Jordanian border, where hundreds of ISIS fighters and heavily-armed al-Nusra terrorists have set up shop, creating a large terrorist base-camp which enjoys additional protection against Syrian advances by the US military. Another such ISIS stronghold is located in a small pocket of the Euphrates river valley in eastern Syria, tucked away on the US-occupied side of the river at the Iraqi border. Once the SAA clears the few remaining pockets of ISIS in the Syrian controlled parts of the country, the US-protected ISIS pockets will surely become a top priority to deal with; but short of waging war on the US, the Syrian options are limited, and the ISIS cells will surely use the US safety net afforded them to push back into Syrian territory and carry out hit-and-run attacks.
(*Map: [SouthFront](https://southfront.org/military-situation-in-syria-on-november-11-2018-map-update/), Military situation in Syria - 11/11/18*)
There are currently only 3 small ISIS pockets left inside Syrian-controlled territory in Syria. One is along the Euphrates river, and is at this point confined to the city of Abu Kamal at the Iraqi border, so is really just an extension of the main ISIS pocket which sits on the US-side of the river. The Syrian alliance had recently launched a major offensive on this front, moving quickly to clear the contested cities of ISIS, starting with Deir Ezzor city and moving east, advancing towards the Iraqi border. One remaining ISIS pocket is in the heavily fortified al-Safa desert stronghold just south of al-Tanf, and one is in the Deir-Ezzor desert area just east of Palmyra and northeast of al-Tanf (near where the hostages were rescued). The SAA has in the past few days not only begun a major advance on al-Safa, but has also [renewed the military effort to clear ISIS from the Deir-Ezzor Desert area](https://southfront.org/map-update-syrian-army-once-again-renews-its-attempts-to-eliminate-isis-cells-in-central-desert/) east of Palmyra. The Syrian alliance seems to be making a concerted effort to quickly eradicate ISIS from its territory by attacking all three ISIS fronts simultaneously with full force. ["Several thousand" additional Hezbollah fighters were also just "re-injected" into Syria in the past few weeks to aid the Syrian army in this task at the Euphrates front.](https://www.moonofalabama.org/2017/11/syria-summary-isis-loses-control-of-its-last-urban-refuge.html)
On November 10 and in preparation for an imminent ground assault, the Syrian army was [pounding the ISIS fortifications in al-Safa](https://southfront.org/syrian-army-rains-down-hell-fire-on-isis-in-al-safa-videos/) with heavy artillery; and with the arrival of the army's 4th division and Russian Special Forces, the SAA should finally now be able to defeat ISIS there. The new assault was launched immediately, and [on November 11](https://southfront.org/syrian-army-kicks-off-new-attack-ageist-isis-in-al-safa/) the SAA advanced an additional 2km deep, killing several terrorists. By the looks of things, ISIS will be swiftly defeated there in a matter of days.
Whenever it does happen, and the caches of ISIS weapons in al-Safa are seized, the moment of truth will be upon us, and we will all get to see if the actual ISIS cells which carried out the massive slaughter of Syrian civilians in al-Sweida in July were armed with US weapons. At that time, Hezbollah accused the ISIS "gangs" of being armed at al-Tanf and operating with "obvious" American assistance. If US weapons are found to have been in the hands of the ISIS cells at al-Safa, then the US will be demonstrably complicit in a viscous terrorist attack responsible for the murder of over 200 Syrians, the slaughter of over 100 civilians, the injuring of many more, the kidnapping of 30 women and children, and the subsequent execution of several of the hostages. As it is, the captured ISIS terrorist has already admitted that ISIS cells in al-Safa were indeed armed with US weapons at al-Tanf, so the Hezbollah claim certainly rings true today. It will be interesting to see how this story ends.
### New round of escalation in Idlib & a Russian warning that White Helmets are preparing to stage new false flag chemical attack
Meanwhile there has also been much more action on the Idlib front in the past few days, with escalating tensions there indicating that a Syrian military offensive on the terrorist-occupied province may once again be on the horizon. The al-Qaeda group in control of the province, Hayat Tahir al-Sham (HTS) along with other allied groups in Idlib have continually violated the de-escalation ceasefire agreement since it was implemented in September, clearly attempting to sabotage it and provoke war with Syrian forces. In the past few days, however, the terrorist groups have really been ramping up their attacks on nearby Syrian military positions following [HTS military drills in Idlib](https://southfront.org/hayat-tahrir-al-sham-conducts-drills-preparing-for-new-round-of-escalation-in-idlib-photos/) around November 6-7.
This looks to be an obvious coordinated attempt to collapse the ceasefire agreement and provoke the SAA to war. Syria has repeatedly warned that if the violations are not stopped, the SAA will move to resume its planned military offensive against the terrorists in Idlib. If this occurs, it will create the desirable conditions for the White Helmet to carry out a [planned false flag chemical attack](https://steemit.com/conspiracy/@jasonliberty/civilians-flee-idlib-ahead-of-offensive-as-white-helmets-terrorists-set-final-plans-for-false-flag-attack-assign-roles-in) to be blamed on Syrian forces, to provoke the US to intervene on behalf of the terrorists against the Syrian army.
[On November 6](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150479), **the Russian Ambassador to the UN warned "that the so-called “White Helmets” terrorist organization is plotting a new play through using chemical weapons in Aleppo Countryside with the aim of accusing the Syrian Arab Army."** This is around the same time as the HTS military drills. Then on November 10, [HTS carried out two attacks](https://southfront.org/turkey-sends-security-convoy-to-meet-militants-amid-escalation-in-northern-hama/) - in Hama & Latakia - and even [claimed to have killed seven Russian troops in northern Hama.](https://southfront.org/hayat-tahrir-al-sham-claims-its-fighters-killed-seven-russian-service-members-in-northern-hama/) On November 11, the SAA [intercepted and repelled](https://southfront.org/news-of-de-escalation-army-prevents-another-militant-attack-in-northern-hama/) a large attacking terrorist force from the ranks of HTS and the "Turkistan Islamic Party". [Later on November 11](https://southfront.org/syrian-army-retaliates-to-ceasefire-violations-in-southwestern-aleppo-and-northwestern-hama-photos/), the HTS-allied “Wa Harid al-Muminin” operation room carried out two machine-gun attacks around Aleppo and Hama.
It sure seems like a coordinated play, the increased terrorist attacks immediately following a Russian warning that the terrorists were again preparing to stage a chemical attack.
>During a session of the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East on Monday, Nebenzya said **“We continue to receive alarming information on that terrorist organizations in Syria along with the (White Helmets) are still preparing for large-scale provocations through using toxic substances to accuse the Syrian army and to provide pretexts for launching new aggression on Syria.”**
>
>**He noted that Russia obtained information on that terrorists of the so-called “Turkistan Army” and the “White Helmets” transported 20 containers of liquid chlorine and canisters containing toxic substances to Ezaz town and other areas in Aleppo Countryside, in addition to equipment required for filming their new provocative play.**- [*SANA*](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150479)
### Conclusion
**On November 8, the SAA freed 19 Syrian civilian being held hostage by ISIS. [On November 9,](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150709) the US massacred at least 26 Syrian civilians in the name of fighting ISIS - dozens of airstrikes targeting civilian houses in Hajin.** The US has been raining hell down on Deir Ezzor for several weeks, where Hajin has been the target for [internationally-banned white phosphorous bombs](https://www.mintpressnews.com/us-uses-banned-white-phosphorus-bombs-in-syrian-city-for-the-fourth-time-in-two-months/251537/) and [civilian massacres](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150334), [the latest of which](https://www.sana.sy/en/?p=150334) claimed the lives of two women and two children on Saturday, November 10.
Meanwhile the Syrian army has been busy rescuing civilians and crushing ISIS. The contrast could not be more clear. The US is committing war crimes in Hajin, massacring civilians and displacing a large population of the town as part of an operation it claims is 'fighting ISIS', while the SAA is busy actually destroying the ISIS terrorists. The US is protecting terrorists and killing civilians while the SAA is killing the terrorists and protecting civilians; and in the end, one way or another the US and its proxy-terrorists are going to be defeated in Syria. I just hope that day comes sooner rather than later for the sake of the Syrian people.
