in Deir ez-Zor; though they normally also cooperated with other, more moderate rebels, they also worked with the Islamic State, especially in Deir ez-Zor's hinterland. Al-Nusra Front Liwa al-Fatihoun min Ard ash-Sham Ahrar al-Sham Government forces Syrian Armed Forces Syrian Army Republican Guard 104 Mechanized Brigade 17th Division National Defence Forces Syrian Police Shabiha Military Intelligence Directorate Forces of the Fighters of the Tribes July 2011 – May 2012 clashes On 31 July 2011, the government sent the Syrian Arab Army into several Syrian cities to control protests on the eve of Ramadan, as part of a nationwide crackdown, nicknamed the "Ramadan Massacre" by opposition activists. One of the cities was Deir ez-Zor. By 13 August 2011, anti-government activists reported that at least 89 people were killed in the city and its hinterland. On 17 August, the military ordered a partial retreat of its forces to let a police-guided group of journalist to tour the city. Tanks and armored vehicles moved from the city center to camps on the outskirts. On 26 November, 10 soldiers were killed by defectors in fierce clashes around the city. Several rebel casualties were also reported. During UN-brokered cease-fire On 30 April 2012, rebels attacked an Army base in the city, killing 12 soldiers. Security forces responded with heavy-machine gun and mortar fire, killing at least one civilian and demolishing a school building. On 19 May 2012, a car bomb exploded in the town, killing nine people. The blast struck a parking lot for a military intelligence complex. On 22 May, it was reported that two protesters were killed by Syrian police in the presence of U.N observers, who immediately left the area. By this point, it was reported that many towns and villages were under rebel control in the Deir ez-Zor province. 2012–2014 battle for control June 2012 fighting On 13 June, hundreds of Syrian Army troops, backed by tanks, stormed Deir ez-Zor in response to attacks by the Free Syrian Army in the previous week which destroyed several tanks and APCs and killed dozens of soldiers. Large swaths of the province fell into rebel hands after the alliance between the ruling Alawite elite and Sunni tribes collapsed, leaving government troops with stretched supply lines. On 20 June, the Syrian Army heavily shelled positions held by the Free Syrian Army in the city of Abu Kamal, on the Iraqi border. At that time, residents