Almost 30 Dead as Syrian Forces Clash With ISIS

Clashes on Tuesday in the Syrian desert between Russia-backed regime forces and Islamic State (ISIS) militants have killed almost 30 fighters.

On Tuesday, clashes and Russian airstrikes killed 13 militants, while 16 regime fighters died in fighting.

The battles centred around Ithriya, in Hama province, and further east, near where the provincial borders of Hama, Aleppo and Raqqa meet.

Mobile ISIS units have remained active in the Syrian desert since the militants lost the last shred of their self-proclaimed caliphate in March last year.

Intermittent fighting, mostly in the Badia, has killed more than 900 regime fighters and 140 allied Iran-backed combatants since March, as well as almost 500 ISIS militants.