Syrian & Iraqi Forces Link Up At Border For First Time In Years

Syrian government troops along with allied militia have linked up with Iraqi forces at a crossing point along their shared border on Sunday for the first time in years

The development comes a day after Iraqi forces captured the border crossing point from ISIS.

Press TV reports:

Lebanon-based Arabic-language al-Manar television network reported on Sunday that the army units in cooperation with allies had managed to liberate 25,000 square kilometers (9,600 square miles) of land during a campaign in the border region in recent weeks.

“This is the sign of the cooperation between the brotherly Iraqi and Syrian military leadership to secure the shared borders,” a Syrian army general, speaking on condition of anonymity, told privately-owned and pro-government al-Ikhbariya al-Soriyah television news network.

The general said the meeting point for Iraqi and Syrian forces is northeast of Tanf base, where the US military is training anti-government Takfiri militants.

The Syrian military official further noted that the new meeting point is only 20 kilometers (12 miles) from al-Mayadeen area, where Daesh terrorists have recently relocated much of their leadership to.

The development came only a day after Iraqi forces liberated al-Waleed border crossing point in the Ar-Rutba district of the western province of Anbar from Daesh extremists.

Meanwhile, the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Iraqi forces had moved northeast of al-Waleed, meeting up with pro-government Syrian troops for the first time since 2015.