DAMASCUS, June 19 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army captured over 20 villages and towns in the countryside of the northern province of Raqqa, the de facto capital of the Islamic State (IS) group, state news agency SANA reported on Monday.
In a statement carried by SANA, the general command of the Syrian army said the government forces and allied troops captured over 20 villages and towns and the key city of Rasafeh in the southern countryside of Raqqa.
This comes a day after the U.S.-led coalition brought down a Syrian warplane striking IS positions in Raqqa.
The incident sparked tension between the U.S. and Russia, as the U.S. said the downed Syrian jet was striking near the positions of U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
In a statement Monday, the SDF said the Syrian army has been targeting IS positions in Raqqa since June 17.
However, the Syrian army said it was striking IS positions over Rasafeh, accusing the U.S. of attempting to thwart the government forces' progress in the city.
The SDF is fighting to capture Raqqa from IS, while the Syrian government forces were advancing in the western and southern countryside of Raqqa to secure areas in the southern countryside of Aleppo province and to open a road to extend the operation to the eastern province of Deir al-Zour.
Following the warplane incident, Russia suspended the safe flight agreement with the U.S., which has repeatedly struck Syrian government forces advancing against IS in the Syrian desert recently.
Such incidents imply that defeating IS in its strongholds could be the beginning of a new conflict in Syria between Russia-backed and U.S.-supported forces.
