Deir ez-Zor campaign (2017–2019)

Deir ez-Zor campaign (2017–2019)
	Part of the Deir ez-Zor Governorate campaign, the Rojava–Islamist conflict, and the American-led intervention in the Syrian Civil War
	; The situation in Deir ez-Zor, as of 23 March 2019 Syrian Democratic Forces control Syrian Government control Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant control
Date	First phase:; 8 September 2017 – 5 March 2018; (5 months, 3 weeks and 4 days); Second phase:; 1 May – 4 August 2018; (3 months and 3 days); Third phase:; 10 September 2018 – 23 March 2019; (6 months, 1 week and 6 days)
Location	Eastern Syria Southern Al-Hasakah Governorate; Eastern Deir ez-Zor Governorate;
Result	SDF and allied victory The SDF captures 14,020 square kilometers of territory (containing at least 50,000 civilians); In Spring 2018, the SDF pauses the campaign without fully clearing ISIL from eastern Syria, for a couple of months, due to a Turkish assault on YPG-held Afrin; The SDF expels ISIL from the Iraqi–Syrian border region on 4 August 2018; The SDF captures Hajin, the last major stronghold, from ISIL on 14 December 2018; The SDF captures ISIL's last stronghold, Baghuz Fawqani, on 13 February 2019, with the exception of an ISIL camp south of the town; The SDF fully defeats ISIL on 23 March, ending ISIL territorial control east of the Euphrates River;
Belligerents
Syrian Democratic Forces; Federal Security Forces; International Freedom Battalion; CJTF–OIR United States; United Kingdom; France; Netherlands; Russia Iraq (2018)	Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Wilayat al-Sham al-Barakah district; al-Khayr district; al-Furat district; ;
Commanders and leaders
Ahmad Abu Khawla; (Deir ez-Zor Military Council commander); Yasser al-Dahla; (Deir ez-Zor Military Council, Gathering of Baggara Youth commander); Rojda Kobanê; (YPJ commander); Rojda Felat; (YPJ commander); Ammar al-Salloum †; (Senior commander); Agid Ahmed; (Manbij Military Council commander); Abjer Abjer; (MFS commander); Robert Ichou; (Nattoreh commander); Haider al-Abadi	Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi; (Leader of ISIL); Mohammed Mahmoud al-Abadi †; (High-ranking commander); Mohammed Obeid al-Muhsin "Abu Kharja" ; (Regional senior commander); Saddam Omar Hussein al-Jamal (POW); Essam Abdel Qader al-Zobei (POW) (Senior commander); Omar Shebab al-Karbouly (POW) (Senior commander); Mohammed Hussein al-Qadeer (POW) (Senior commander); Saleh Khalaf al-Ali (POW); (Regional commander); Hisen Ayid el-Bilebil Ebu el-Walid †; Shaykh Abu Anas al-Furati †; Abu Adham al-Shami †; Abothan al-Jazihad †; Abd al-Rahman Filipini †; Abd al Rahman al-Tamimi †; Aysh al-Dagestani † (Brigade commander); Abu Khattab al-Iraqi †; (Leader of ISIL's oil and gas network)
Units involved
Syrian Democratic Forces Deir ez-Zor Military Council Gathering of al-Baggara Youth; Khabat al-Sha'iti Battalion; Hajin battalion; ; People's Protection Units (YPG) YPG International; ; Women's Protection Units (YPJ); Anti-Terror Units; Al-Sanadid Forces; Manbij Military Council Manbij Revolutionaries Battalion; Martyr Abdo Dushka Regiment; ; Army of Revolutionaries Kurdish Front; ; Northern Democratic Brigade; Syriac Military Council (MFS) Special Forces unit; ; Nattoreh; Federal Security Forces Self Defence Forces; Asayish; International Freedom Battalion; TKP/ML TİKKO; Iraqi security forces Popular Mobilization Forces; United States Armed Forces United States Air Force; United States special operations forces; United States Army (support role per local reports); British Armed Forces SAS (unconfirmed by authorities); French Armed Forces French SOF; Task Force Wagram (heavy artillery)	Military of ISIL
Strength
≈17,000	6,000–10,000
Casualties and losses
162 killed, 416 wounded (2017; per the SDF); 201 killed (2018; per the SDF); 256 killed (2019; per the SDF); 753 killed, 35 captured (10 Sep.–23 March 2019; per the SOHR)	1,345 killed, 4,000 wounded, 64 captured (2017; per the SDF); 298 killed (Jan. 2018; per the SDF); 1,618 killed, 9,250 captured (10 Sep. 2018–23 March 2019; per the SOHR)
	698 civilians killed (10 Sep.–23 March 2019), 720+ alleged defectors and prisoners executed by ISIL, including Yazidi captives

The Deir ez-Zor campaign, codenamed the al-Jazeera Storm campaign, was a military operation launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Syria's Deir ez-Zor Governorate in 2017 during the Syrian Civil War with the goal of capturing territory in eastern Syria, particularly east and north of the Euphrates river. The U.S.-led Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF–OIR) anti-ISIL coalition provided extensive air support while SDF personnel composed the majority of the ground forces; OIR special forces and artillery units were also involved in the campaign.

The ground campaign stalled and was paused in early 2018 due to the Turkish military operation in Afrin, but resumed on 1 May 2018 with the new phase named by the coalition as Operation Roundup. The third phase began on 10 September 2018 but was halted due to Turkish artillery attacks on SDF positions near the Syria-Turkey border on 31 October. The SDF and the coalition announced the resumption of the offensive on 11 November. After a series of steady successes following the capture of ISIL's Hajin stronghold, and a ten-day pause for civilian evacuations, the SDF launched its final assault on ISIL's final pocket of territory on 9 February 2019 and declared victory on 23 March, concluding the campaign.

The first phase of the campaign was concurrent with another SDF operation, the Raqqa campaign conducted against Raqqa, ISIL's then-capital city and main stronghold in Syria, as well as the Central Syria campaign, the Eastern Syria campaign, the Syrian Desert campaign, and the Deir ez-Zor offensive, in which the Syrian Army (SAA) was also capturing territory from the Islamic State; the Iraqi Army's Western Iraq campaign against ISIL was also underway.

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