HOMS (Syria). Feb 18 (Interfax) - There has been a sharp increase in illegal armed groups' activity in the Homs and Deir ez-Zor provinces in southern Syria, a spokesman for the group of forces of the Russian Armed Forces in Syria told reporters.
"One of the reasons why they [militants] have been able to covertly move across the desert is that they can hide in the territory of the Al-Tanf zone, which is controlled by the international coalition led by the U.S. and militant units from the former Free Syrian Army controlled by it," the spokesman said.
Syrian government forces, backed by unmanned aerial vehicles of the Russian Aerospace Forces, found a large arms cache used by militants from the Islamic State (ISIL) terrorist organization (banned in Russia) active in the Homs and Deir ez-Zor provinces, he said. Four militants were neutralized during this operation.
"As a result of their reconnaissance and search operations, Syrian government forces, backed by unmanned aerial vehicles of the Russian Aerospace Forces, came across a major arms cache in the desert in the east of the Homs province. It has been used by ISIL militants to carry out their terrorist acts in the Homs and Deir ez-Zor provinces. During the operation, [Syrian government] forces eliminated four militants on two pickups equipped with large-caliber machineguns who were spotted near the cache and were apparently guarding it," the spokesman said.
Thirty-six automatic weapons and hand-held machineguns, seven large-caliber machineguns, a mounted grenade launcher with 28 grenades, an anti-tank missile system, 87 mines and grenades, some 40 kilograms of explosives, more than 22,000 pieces of ammunition, including ammunition produced in NATO countries, around 45 kilograms of medicines, among them imported medication, and 350 kilograms of food, were seized from the cache.