US-backed fighters cornered the Islamic State group in a last part of Tabqa on Monday, after tearing down a huge jihadist flag that had fluttered over the northern Syrian city. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, were in control of all but a fifth of Tabqa as of early … Read more
US-backed fighters have captured 80 percent of Syria’s Tabqa from the Islamic State group, a monitor said on Monday, a week after they first entered the town. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) broke into Tabqa from the south last week and have steadily advanced north, cornering IS in three contiguous neighbourhoods on the bank of … Read more
A US-backed Kurdish-Arab alliance is advancing against the ISIS in the key town of Tabqa near the jihadist bastion of Raqa in northern Syria, a monitor said Sunday. The Syrian Democratic Forces now control over half the town of Tabqa, including most of its heart, the Old City, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor … Read more
As US-backed fighters advance on the Islamic State group’s de facto Syrian stronghold Raqa, a waterway “corridor” has become a key supply line, and an escape route for displaced civilians. An AFP team accompanied fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-Arab alliance that is fighting to capture the strategic town of Tabqa, some 55 … Read more
A US-backed Kurdish-Arab alliance is advancing against the Islamic State group in the key town of Tabqa near the jihadist bastion of Raqa in northern Syria, a monitor said Sunday. The Syrian Democratic Forces now control at least 40 percent of the town of Tabqa, and more than half of its heart, the Old City, … Read more
Turkish warplanes conducted a barrage of air strikes on Kurdish positions in northeast Syria early Tuesday, leaving several fighters dead, Kurdish forces and a monitor said. The Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) said the strikes hit their positions near the Syrian border town of Al-Malikiyah at 2:00 am Tuesday (2300 GMT Monday). “Turkish planes carried … Read more
US-backed fighters have reached the outskirts of a key jihadist-held town in northern Syria as part of an offensive against the Islamic State group’s bastion Raqa, a monitor said Saturday. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an Arab-Kurdish alliance supported by US-led coalition air strikes and special forces advisers, surrounded Tabqa in early April and have … Read more
A coalition air strike accidentally killed 18 members of a US-backed Arab-Kurdish alliance fighting the Islamic State group near a key town in northern Syria, the US-led coalition said Thursday. Tuesday’s strike occurred south of Tabqa, a strategically important town on the Euphrates River next to a dam and military airport, and close to the … Read more
In a muddy camp in northern Syria, civilians who fled Raqa said fear of an expected US-backed assault on the Islamic State group bastion was reaching a fever pitch. This week, hundreds of civilians escaped Raqa and headed north to the camp in Ain Issa, in territory controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed … Read more
Four Syrian towns are to be evacuated under an agreement between pro-government forces and rebels, in the latest of a series of deals to end crippling years-long sieges. The agreement, brokered by rebel supporter Qatar and regime ally Iran, is expected to involve more than 30,000 people, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The … Read more
Syrian engineers were expected to carry out urgent maintenance Wednesday on the country’s largest dam, where US-backed fighters have been battling Islamist State group jihadists who still control most of it. The maintenance work, which entails opening a spillway to relieve the pressure of water on the dam, will involve the engineers entering areas held … Read more
Clashes raged around a key northern Syrian town on Tuesday after the Islamic State group launched a counter-attack to fend off a US-backed advance near the jihadists’ stronghold Raqa. Backed by air power from an international coalition bombing IS, the Syrian Democratic Forces are laying the groundwork for an assault on the heart of the … Read more
The Islamic State group launched a counter-attack Tuesday against US-backed fighters closing in on a key jihadist-held town in northern Syria, a monitor said. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said clashes were raging around Tabqa, a town on the southern bank of the Euphrates River. “The fighting is a result of IS launching a … Read more
The road to the Tabqa dam in northern Syria is strewn with evidence of the clashes being waged by a US-backed alliance of fighters against the Islamic State group. Bits of burned vehicles and the casings of ammunition litter the roadside leading into the dam complex, which the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) entered Friday. Two … Read more
US-backed forces battled the Islamic State group around a key Syrian town Monday, hours after the capture of an airbase brought them closer to besieging the jihadists in their stronghold Raqa. Backed by air power from the US-led coalition that has been bombing IS since 2014, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are laying the groundwork … Read more
US-backed forces battled Islamic State group fighters around a key northern Syrian town on Monday, a monitor said, hours after seizing a military airport from the jihadists. The capture of Tabqa airbase late Sunday comes as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) prepare an attack on IS’s de facto Syrian capital Raqa, seeking to surround the … Read more
A US-backed force of Syrian Kurdish and Arab fighters say they have taken full control of a key airbase held by the Islamic State group (IS) near Raqqa. Its capture is seen as a significant step in the fight to drive the jihadists out of the city, which has become their de facto capital. Talal … Read more
United States-backed local forces gained important ground Sunday in the fight against the Islamic State in Syria. Forces on the ground said they have taken full control of a former Syrian army airport near the city of Tabqa along the Euphrates River. The capture of Tabqa airbase comes as the alliance prepares an attack on … Read more
Fighting at a dam held by the Islamic State jihadist group in northern Syria put it out of service Sunday, risking dangerous rising water levels, a technical source told AFP. A Kurdish-Arab alliance known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is battling to take Tabqa dam and nearby Tabqa town from IS before advancing on … Read more
The international coalition battling the Islamic State group will begin a final push on the jihadists’ Syrian stronghold Raqa in the coming days, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Friday. But on the ground, the US-backed Kurdish-Arab alliance spearheading the battle for the jihadist group’s de facto Syrian capital faces several key obstacles before … Read more