Islamic State launches counter-offensive against SDF forces December 5, 2018 - 14:01 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The Islamic State launched a counter-offensive on Tuesday, December 4 evening in the southeastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor after losing a significant amount of territory in the northern part of Hajin, Al-Masdar News reports. According to reports from the Deir ez-Zor front, IS managed to retake several points inside of Hajin that they lost to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) over the last 24 hours. However, the extent of their advance is still unknown at this time due to the heavy bombardment of Hajin by the U.S.-led Coalition. The town of Hajin is believed to be IS' de-facto capital in Syria and Iraq after they lost the cities of Raqqa, Mosul (northwest Iraq), Albukamal, and Mayadeen. For IS, conceding Hajin to the Syrian Democratic Forces would be a devastating blow to their self-proclaimed ‘caliphate’, as its the largest town under their control in the Middle East.   Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims  Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide.Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed.Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham).Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |
