TEL ABYAD/RAQQA, Syria

The United States has armed its forces stationed near oil fields in eastern Syria with a HIMARS missile system, according to local sources on Tuesday.

The HIMARS missile system was sent to US forces in Deir ez-Zor province in the past few days, the sources told Anadolu.

Deir ez-Zor province, east of the Euphrates River, is currently occupied by the YPG/PKK terrorist group.

The missile system “was sent to the American bases in Al-Omar oilfield and Conoco gas plant,” the sources said.

The move “aims to confront possible attacks by Iran-backed groups on the opposite bank of the Euphrates River,” the local sources said.

US forces in Syria have come under drone and missile attacks in several occasions from areas controlled by Iran-backed groups.

Since 2015, the US forces in Syria have trained thousands of YPG/PKK terrorists in their military bases in the region, under the pretext of combating terrorism. The US has also provided YPG/PKK terrorists with huge amounts of weapons and combat equipment.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011 when the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi