ISIL, Syria's Russian-backed army fight over Palmyra

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants and Syria's Russian-backed army fought over the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra on Dec. 11, with both sides claiming the upper hand. 

Russia said its jets had helped force the militants out of the city center overnight, and its allies in the Syrian army were now fighting off another assault by the hardline Islamists. 

But a news agency linked to ISIL said it had only briefly retreated and was now back in control of Palmyra, an account backed by the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict, Reuters reported. 

Palmyra, the site of a Roman-era city and spectacular ruins in the center of Syria, has become an emblematic battleground in a civil war now in its sixth year. 

The Russian Defense Ministry said its jets had launched 64 strikes and killed more than 300 militants overnight, helping the Syrian army push the main force back. 

The Syrian army acknowledged there was a large offensive by the militants from several fronts near a major grain silo 10 kilometers (6 miles) east of the city. 

An ISIL recapture of Palmyra would be a major reversal for Syria's government and its Russian backer which hailed the city's capture in March, sent troops to protect it and even staged a concert there.
 
The fight could also have implications for other battlegrounds in Syria. 

The Syrian army said on Dec. 10 it had sent reinforcements to Palmyra to help defend it. Some of those were diverted from Aleppo, a rebel from the countryside outside that northern city said, a development that could ease pressure on rebels there.  

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