The Syrian Arab Army (SAA) – in coordination with the National Defense Forces (NDF) and the Al-Ba’ath Battalions – has taken full control of two villages in the western part of Al-Hasakah after engaging the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) in a series of fierce clashes on Tuesday.

According to a military source in the province, the SAA and their allies took control of Rafraf and Mufraq Al-Sadeeq in the Al-Hasakah District on Tuesday, killing 30 enemy combatants from ISIS and destroying four of their armored vehicles that were mounted with 23mm anti-aircraft machine guns.

Over the weekend, the SAA and their allies captured the village of Tal Majdal in the Al-Hasakah District; this led to the Syrian Armed Forces expanding their control over the surrounding rural territory.

At the Khabbur River front on Monday, the predominately Kurdish “People’s Protection Forces” (YPG) – in coordination with fighters from the Syriac Military Council’s “Suturo” militia – captured the village of Salahiyah after they stormed ISIS’ fortifications and killed two dozen of the enemy combatants.

Meanwhile, north of the Khabbur River, the YPG was able to recapture the village of Hawsha Nasser from ISIS’ possession after destroying two armored vehicles mounted with heavy machine guns at the strategic city of Ras Al-‘Ayn’s outskirts in northern Al-Hasakah.

In addition to their success at Ras Al-‘Ayn, the YPG captured the village of ‘Aliyah in rural Al-Hasakah, killing 14 ISIS militants and seizing their weapons before the battle concluded.