IS reveals video of Sweida hostages amid progress of Syrian army in battle

DAMASCUS, Aug. 12 — The Islamic State (IS) on Sunday published a footage of the hostages snatched late last month in the southern province of Sweida amid progress of the Syrian army in the battle with the group in Sweida countryside.
The video, circulated by local media, showed two women speaking about the tough circumstances of their captivity, as over 30 people were abducted by IS during the sudden offensive on July 25 in Sweida countryside.
Two of the hostages had already died, including a 19-year-old man slaughtered by IS and a woman who died from worsening medical condition.
In the video on Sunday, one of the women said she had given birth ahead of the time, which led to the death of the baby.
The video purported to show the well-being of the hostages, as IS has been bargaining their release in exchange for the acceptance of the Syrian army to allow IS militants to flee to the desert region.
Activists said the negotiations between the Syrian army and IS were not fruitful at a time the Syrian army is on a wide-scale offensive to stamp out IS from the desert region of in the eastern and northeastern countryside of Sweida.
Meanwhile, state news agency SANA said the army has secured the eastern administrative border of Sweida on Sunday, besieging IS in the al-Safa hilltops northeast of Sweida.
On the opposition side, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor group said the Syrian army has captured the entire desert region after broad offensive on IS that has begun nearly a week ago.
The Britain-based watchdog said the entire province of Sweida has returned under the government control.
Sweida, which is predominantly inhabited by people of the Druze minority, has been largely safe during the country’s more than seven-year-long war except for the countryside of Sweida, as IS controlled parts of it near the desert.
The Syrian army has recently captured the provinces of Quneitra and Daraa in southern Syria and the recapture of the al-Safa hilltops will mark the liberation of the entire southwestern region.
However, the fate of the kidnapped people is still unknown with no clear deal on the horizon amid a state of fear in Sweida for their lives, after IS attack led to the killing of 260 people in Sweida late last month. – XINHUA