The US military has secretly transferred a large number of Daesh members from the al- Khan al-Jabal Camp in Syria’s northeastern Hasakah province, which is run by allied Kurdish militants, to a facility in neighboring Iraq, a report says.
Syria’s official news agency, SANA, citing local sources, reported on Thursday that American forces relocated hundreds of Daesh terrorists and their families on board heavy-duty inmate transports, and the vehicles were escorted by militants from the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The US forces used a convoy of more than 200 vehicles to transport them to Iraq through the illegitimate al-Waleed crossing, it added.
The US military frequently trains anti-Damascus militants at the al-Tanf base near Syria's borders with Iraq and Jordan.
A number of captured Daesh terrorists have already confessed to close cooperation with US military forces stationed at al-Tanf in the central Syrian province of Homs on carrying out various acts of terror and sabotage.
Washington has unilaterally declared a 55-kilometer “de-confliction zone” around the facility, and frequently threatened to target Syrian forces within the area.
The US military has stationed forces and equipment in eastern and northeastern Syria, claiming that it is aimed at preventing the oilfields in the area from falling into the hands of Daesh terrorists.
Damascus says the unlawful deployment is meant to plunder the country’s resources.
Former US president Donald Trump admitted on several occasions that American forces were in Syria for its oil.
Failing to oust the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad through its proxies and direct involvement in the conflict, the US government has in recent years stepped up an economic war on the Arab country.
A US-led military coalition has also been active inside Syria under the pretext of fighting Daesh since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate.
US military strikes in the Arab country have on many occasions resulted in civilian casualties and failed to fulfill their declared aim of countering terrorism.
The new development comes as security conditions have been deteriorating in the SDF-controlled areas in Syria’s northern and northeastern provinces of Raqqah, Hasakah and Dayr al-Zawr.
Local Syrians complain that the SDF’s constant raids have generated a state of frustration and instability, severely affecting their businesses and livelihood.
Washington has long been collaborating with anti-Damascus militants and plundering Syria’s resources, ignoring repeated calls by Damascus to end its illegal occupation of the country.
In recent years, Syrian troops have made significant advances against remaining pockets of land held by militants across the Arab country, but the US and its allies are preventing the country from returning to normality.