ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Thousands of civilians have fled the last pocket of ISIS-held territory in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor, a conflict monitor reported on Thursday.

In the last 24 hours, 2,800 people have fled into territory controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. This brings the total of civilians displaced in the area during December to 11,100.

They include nationals of Syria, Iraq, Russia, Somalia, and the Philippines, said the Observatory. Many of them are relatives of jihadists.

Hundreds of ISIS militants have tried to escape among the civilians. The SDF have arrested more than 500 fighters who had infiltrated the fleeing populations.

Most of the arrests were made based on tip offs from civilians, the Observatory stated.

The number of civilians still living under ISIS rule is not known. The Observatory said it does not have clear information of those numbers.

Last week, the United Nations warned that an estimated 6,000 civilians were still trapped by ISIS in Hajin.

As they did throughout the conflict in Iraq and Syria, ISIS militants are executing people who try to escape on charges of “going out to the land of the infidel,” the Observatory reported.

The SDF has said that militants are using the civilians as “human shields” as they struggle to hold onto ever-shrinking territory.

The Kurdish-led forces finally advanced into Hajin in mid-December after weeks of stalemate. ISIS remains in control of smaller villages along the Euphrates River and has launched numerous counter-attacks against the SDF.

Aid agencies do not have access to the area because of the ongoing clashes.

Rudaw