Clashes continue between rival terrorist groups in Syria’s eastern Ghouta

At least 74 foreign-backed Takfiri militants have been killed in a new bout of infighting between rival terrorists groups on the outskirts of the Syrian capital, Damascus.

According to the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Saturday, the fighting erupted on Friday between members of the Jaish al-Islam terror group and an alliance of al-Qaeda-linked groups in the densely-populated eastern Ghouta region.

Jaish al-Islam terrorists are currently engaged in clashes with militants from the Faylaq al-Rahman terror group and the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group, which is an alliance of al-Qaeda-linked groups, including Jabhat Fateh al-Sham.

The so-called Faylaq al-Rahman terror group released a statement on Friday claiming that Jaish al-Islam terrorists had targeted several of its positions.

In turn, the Saudi-backed Jaish al-Islam released a statement calling on Faylaq al-Rahman to deescalate the fighting, noting that their dispute was only with Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.

Infighting between rival terrorist groups in the region killed hundreds of people before a ceasefire was brokered by Qatar last April.

Jaish al-Islam is the dominant Takfiri group in eastern Ghouta. One of the group’s leaders, Mohammad Alloush, has been among the senior negotiators of the so-called opposition group at Syria peace talks in Switzerland and Kazakhstan.

For nearly six years, Syria has been fighting foreign-sponsored militancy.

United Nations Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura estimated in August last year that more than 400,000 people had been killed in the war until then. The UN stopped its official casualty count in the war-torn country, citing its inability to verify the figures it received from various sources.