The observatory said that “unidentified aircraft” targeted at midnight on Tuesday and Wednesday “trucks carrying weapons and oil tanks” in the countryside of Albukamal, east of Deir ez-Zor.
He added that the bombing caused “heavy human losses”, pointing to a death toll of 15.
In response to a question by AFP, a spokeswoman for the international coalition against extremists led by the United States confirmed that the attack was not a raid by the US army or the coalition.
Nor was the observatory or an official in the Iraqi border guards able to immediately determine the nature of the attack or the party responsible for it.
The Observatory, which is based in Britain and has a wide network of sources in Syria, which has been witnessing a war since 2011, added: “Fourteen people have been confirmed killed so far, most of them from militias affiliated with Iran, and the death toll is likely to rise because of the wounded, some of whom are in a critical condition.”
According to an Iraqi border guard official, the strike in Syria targeted a convoy of “tank trucks loaded with fuel from Iran” that passed through Iraq and was on its way to Lebanon.
He explained that 22 tanker trucks passed through Iraq and ten trucks were targeted in the attack after they passed through Syrian territory. He pointed out that four trucks were “completely burned”, but no injuries were reported immediately.
The observatory also confirmed that “a military site of the militias was targeted near the area.”
Armed groups loyal to Iran enjoy significant military influence in the border area between Syria and Iraq, and are spread on the western bank of the Euphrates River in the Syrian governorate of Deir ez-Zor.
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