Desertions hit IS in East Syria

Islamic State groups have been struck by desertions in the eastern Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor, where they are combating efforts by residents to wage a guerrilla campaign against them, activists said. The desertions and resistance appear to have alarmed Islamic State leaders, who recently dispatched three security detachments of trusted militants from the Iraqi […]

Islamic State groups have been struck by desertions in the eastern Syrian province of Deir ez-Zor, where they are combating efforts by residents to wage a guerrilla campaign against them, activists said.
The desertions and resistance appear to have alarmed Islamic State leaders, who recently dispatched three security detachments of trusted militants from the Iraqi city of Mosul to oversee executions of suspected opponents and to launch a crackdown in the towns of Al-Mayadeen and Hatlah, a mainly Shi’ite village in the oil-rich province bordering Iraq, sources told VOA.
In email exchanges with VOA, activists from a group called Lift Siege, said a steady stream of Islamic State members has been deserting, including four commanders.
They name the commanders as Ammar Haddawi, Aamer Al-Naklawi, Mahmoud Al-Khalaf Al-Rasheideh and Abu Obaidah Al-Masri, who oversaw tax collection in Al-Mayadeen. Commanders have sometimes absconded with large amounts of cash.