At least 13 killed in clashes between Iran-backed fighters and Kurdish forces in Syria

The latest wave of fighting comes amid growing regional tension

Members of the Kurdish-led, US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in Dhiban, Deir Ezzor province, eastern Syria, in September 2023. EPA

At least 13 civilians were killed in eastern Syria on Friday in renewed fighting between pro-Iran groups supporting the government and US-backed Kurdish forces amid mounting regional tensions.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by the US, said 11 civilians, mostly women and children, were killed in regime shelling of Dahla in Deir Ezzor province.

Two civilians – a woman and her daughter – were also killed in shelling by the SDF targeting Al Bulil village, on the western side of the Euphrates, Syrian state media said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based war monitor, said pro-Iranian fighters killed 11 people, including six children, in Dahla. It also confirmed the deaths of two civilians in SDF shelling in Al Bulil.

Two Iranian-backed fighters were also killed and three others wounded in the SDF attack on the village.

The latest round of fighting follows clashes that erupted on Wednesday after pro-Iran tribes crossed the Euphrates and attacked areas under SDF control.

Deir Ezzor is divided between a US sphere of influence and areas jointly controlled by the Syrian army and pro-Iranian militias.

The SDF rules areas where two of the country's key oil and gasfields – Al Omar and Conoco – are located, enabling US influence in the area.

The fighting in eastern Syria comes amid growing tension, heightened by the war in Gaza, between Iran and the US, as well as between their regional allies.

Iran has provided military support to Syrian President Bashar Al Assad throughout the civil war which broke out in 2011.

The US has about 900 troops stationed in the country, which it says are part of a coalition fighting the ISIS in the region.

It also has a base at Conoco oilfield that has come under attack by Iranian-backed militia groups.

Syria has repeatedly called on the US to leave, accusing it of breaching the country's sovereignty.

This week's fighting in eastern Syria is the first in about a year. In September, there was a similar uprising against SDF rule by tribes supported by Damascus and Tehran, but that was stopped once the US intervened on behalf of its allies.