DAMASCUS, Aug. 27 (Xinhua) -- Calm has prevailed on the front line between pro-Iran militias and the U.S. forces in Syria's eastern province of Deir al-Zour over the past 24 hours, a war monitor reported on Saturday.
Cautious calm has been witnessed after days of heavy shelling between the two sides in the oil-rich province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
In a bid to halt the pro-Iran militias' drone attacks on oil fields used as military bases by the U.S. near the Iraqi border, the U.S. had conveyed a "decisive message" of warning to the militias via the Russian forces, according to the UK-based monitor.
The U.S. forces warned pro-Iran militias in the message with increased shelling if their bases kept coming under attack, according to the observatory.
The exchange of fire between the two sides has intensified since Aug. 22, during which at least 11 pro-Iran fighters have been killed and three U.S. soldiers wounded.
Pro-Iran militias have long been backing the Syrian government forces in their fight against the Islamic State (IS) militants in the desert region in Deir al-Zour.
Both the Syrian government and Iran deem the U.S. forces in Syria as forces of occupation.
The U.S. repeatedly targeted the pro-Iran fighters to quell the influence of Iran near the Syrian-Iraqi border and to prevent any transfer of weapons from Iran through Iraq into Syria.
Before the recent shelling, the Syrian government released several statements, accusing the U.S. forces of stealing oil from Syrian oil fields in Deir al-Zour and sending them to U.S. bases in Iraq. ■
