Pentagon says US-backed forces have almost surrounded Raqqa
Pentagon officials say the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have liberated about half of the Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa.
US-backed Syrian rebels have cleared nearly half of the Islamic State’s (IS) stronghold of Raqqa and are close to surrounding the city, Pentagon officials said today.
Soldiers from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a mix of Arab and Kurdish combatants, retook nearly 4 square miles around the embattled Syrian city over the weekend. That force, which receives small arms, vehicles and training from the United States, fought through improvised explosive devices (IEDs), booby traps and car bombs that ring the Old City, where a small pocket of IS fighters remain.
SDF contingents fighting through eastern and western sections of the city are just 300 feet from linking up, a move that could fully sever IS’ last remaining artery into Raqqa, preventing militants from escaping or rejoining the fight.
“What you’re talking about now is the complete encirclement of the Old City,” Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis said of the imminent linkage. “It just further tightens the gauntlet.”
