DAMASCUS, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- U.S. warplanes on Monday struck the headquarters of a university in Syria's northeastern province of Hasakah, as part of a manhunt for Islamic State (IS) fugitives, Syria's state news agency SANA reported.

The airstrikes destroyed a parking lot inside the headquarters, and targeted the vicinity of silos in the Ghweiran neighborhood in the province, the report said.

Since Thursday evening, chaos has prevailed in Ghweiran after the escape of IS inmates from a Kurdish-controlled prison in the neighborhood and the ensuing U.S. airstrikes, media reports said.

Around 80 inmates managed to escape and positioned themselves in nearby buildings, they said.

The chaos has led to the displacement of thousands of civilians to government-controlled areas in the province.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday that the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, backed by the United States and controlling large parts of Hasakah, are preparing to storm the buildings where the escaped inmates are located.

Most of the IS inmates both inside and outside the prison refused to surrender, it added.

In a statement published on Saturday, the Syrian Foreign Ministry repeated its demand for a U.S. withdrawal from Syria, particularly triggered by the targeting of civilians in the process of hunting down fleeing IS militants.

The U.S. forces have been active in Syria since 2014 in the name of fighting terror groups. The Syrian government has repeatedly slammed it as a presence of occupation, accusing the United States of stealing Syrian oil and gas as well as wheat crops. Enditem

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