TOPSHOT - A handout picture released by the official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) shows firefighters battling the blaze at Syria's Latakia port after an Israeli air strike early on December 28, 2021. - An Israeli air strike hit Syria's Latakia port, the second such attack on the key facility this month, according to Syrian state media. (Photo by SANA / AFP) / == RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / HO / SANA" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS == (Photo by -/SANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Islamic State militants attacked posts held by Syrian government troops and fighters loyal to them in northern Syria, killing 10 people and wounding six others, a war monitor said.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Humans Rights, which has been documenting violence in Syria since 2011, on Tuesday said the attack occurred in the town of Ma’dan Ateeq, in the eastern countryside of Raqqa governorate.

The observatory said the militants managed to control the targeted sites for hours before finally withdrawing after setting them on fire.

Raqqa was a former jihadist stronghold in 2014.In 2017, Syrian Kurdish fighters backed by U.S. forces managed to oust the Islamic State from the area.

Islamic State once controlled a large proportion of Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

The extremist militia has been declared militarily defeated in both countries, but it remains active and repeatedly carries out attacks in the region.
dpa/NAN