Government troops control rural areas in the south and east of Raqa province, while Kurdish fighters control the rest.

Daesh group militants killed 10 Syrian troops and pro-government fighters in the former militant stronghold of Raqa province, a war monitor said on Tuesday, displaying their ability to keep mounting deadly attacks.

Despite losing their last piece of territory in Syria in 2019, Daesh has maintained hideouts in the vast Syrian desert from which it has carried out ambushes and hit-and-run attacks.

"Daesh attacked positions and checkpoints belonging to the regime... setting fire to military vehicles and prefabricated houses," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Six soldiers were also wounded in the Monday evening attack, with some in critical condition, said the British-based monitor, which relies on a wide network of sources inside Syria.

Government troops control rural areas in the south and east of Raqa province, while Kurdish fighters control the rest.

The city of Raqa was the centre of the Daesh group's brutal "caliphate" until Kurdish-led forces backed by the United States ousted them in 2017.

In March 2019, Daesh lost the last territory it held in Syria to a Kurdish-led counteroffensive backed by a US-led coalition, but militant remnants continue to carry out deadly attacks.

Targets have included civilians and Kurdish-led fighters as well as government troops and allied pro-Iranian fighters.

Agence France-Presse