An ISIS suicide bomb attack killed at least 15 pro-regime Shiite militants east of the ancient city of palmyra as fierce clashes still underway near an oil-rich area, field sources said on Wednesday.
The death toll of ISIS attacks in the last 24 hours reach total of 19 in the eastern countryside of central Homs province which is a part of the Syrian desert, also known as al-Badiya.
The clashes are ongoing near Hmeimiya village and al-Shaer oil field.
Last week, regime forces seized full control of the town of al-Sukhnah, some 50 kilometers northeast of Palmyra. the last major town in Homs province held by ISIS.
The town is also located some 50 kilometers from the provincial boundary of Deir al-Zor province, ISIS’s last major foothold in Syria and a major target for the Syrian government.
The Islamic State has lost swathes of Syrian territory to separate campaigns being waged by government forces backed by Russia and Iran, and by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is dominated by the Kurdish YPG militia. The SDF is currently focused on capturing Raqqa from ISIS.