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Damascus, November 17 (RHC)-- Local residents of a village in Syria’s northeastern province of Hasakah in cooperation with government forces prevented a U.S. military convoy from advancing through their villages on Wednesday.  Syria’s official news agency SANA reported that a convoy of six armored vehicles was forced to turn around and head back in the direction it came from after locals in al-Buladiyah village aided by government forces stationed at a checkpoint on the outskirts of the area blocked the road.

The report added that the villagers threw stones at the American convoy and chanted vociferous slogans in condemnation of U.S. occupation forces.  There were no reports of casualties during the confrontation.

The development took place two days after the U.S. military, in cooperation with allied Kurdish-led militants affiliated with the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), employed 76 tankers to smuggle crude oil from Syria’s Jazira region in Hasakah province to bases in neighboring Iraq.

The U.S. military has for long stationed its forces and equipment in northeastern Syria, with the Pentagon claiming that the deployment is aimed at preventing the oilfields in the area from falling into the hands of Daesh terrorists.  Damascus, however, maintains the deployment is meant to plunder the country’s natural resources.  Former U.S. president Donald Trump admitted on several occasions that American forces were in the Arab country for its oil wealth.

Separately, Syrian government forces have discovered Western-made weapons from a position of Daesh Takfiri militants in the country's southwestern city of Dara'a.  An informed source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told SANA that security forces carried out a clean-up operation in Tariq al-Sad neighborhood, and found a big weapons depot left behind by members of the Daesh terrorist group.

The source added that the ammunition included mortars, launchers, machine guns of various calibers, sniper rifles and assault rifles.