WATCH: IS bomb explodes near Kurdistan 24 team, SDF fighters in Syria

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A bomb set by Islamic State (IS) fighters exploded near a Kurdistan 24 team that were covering the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF) advance against the militant group’s last stronghold in eastern Syria.

Advancing with the Kurdish-led forces in Deir al-Zor Province’s town of Hajin, Kurdistan 24 correspondent Akram Salih and cameraman Haitham Hassan were passing by a crumbled two-story building when a violent blast jolted them to an abrupt stop as a large plume of smoke shot into the sky.

The explosion came as SDF fighters, supported by US-led coalition airstrikes, continue to cross through the west side of Hajin near the border with Iraq, seeking out remaining IS elements.

“While we were with the operation in Hajin, we arrived near a hospital when a car bomb exploded,” Salih said. ”Fortunately, there were no casualties.” 

On Tuesday, an SDF fighter on the front line told Salih that IS militants had planted many mines and IEDs in the neighborhoods they left behind in Hajin. He said they had also created an extensive network of tunnels and placed multiple snipers on high buildings.

Salih added that, after the incident, “clashes broke out between SDF fighters and IS militants,” during which the SDF “transported us to a safe area outside Hajin with a bullet-proof vehicle.”

In conjunction with SDF efforts to expel IS from the area, Iraqi forces have reinforced their presence on the border to stop members of the Jihadi group from attempting to flee into Iraq.

On Sept. 11, the SDF and US-led coalition announced the start of their operation to take Hajin, located along the banks of the Euphrates River, in addition to the surrounding villages of Baghoz, Susah, and Shafa’. The SDF gained control of Baghoz and Susah in the final week of October.

In late December, the SDF announced it had decided to temporarily halt its campaign against the extremist group until Turkey ended its attacks on Syria’s northeast.

Following intensive discussions with the coalition, the General Command of the SDF announced on Nov. 11 that it would resume military operations against IS in the region.

Editing by John J. Catherine

(Additional reporting by Kurdistan 24 correspondent in Hajin Akram Salih and cameraman Haitham Hassan)