US corroborated army launch attack on Syrian IS ‘capital’
Members of US-backed Kurdish-Arab army muster on a frontline, one kilometre from a Syrian city of Ain Issa, some 50 kilometres (30 miles) north of Raqa, on Nov 6, 2016 as they launched an descent on a Islamic State group’s de facto Syrian capital. The start of a attack by a Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) came as Iraqi army fought inside Mosul for a third day using amid extreme jihadist resistance. PHOTO: AFP
The bloc has also supposing training and deployed hundreds of advisers to work with Iraqi army and name Syrian fighters, including a SDF.
Near Ain Issa, a AFP match saw during slightest one infantryman who had US markings on his helmet with SDF fighters. Sello pronounced a fondness had perceived new weapons from a bloc for a Raqa battle, including anti-tank missiles. Another SDF source pronounced 50 US troops advisers would be concerned in a operation, utterly to beam atmosphere strikes. After it was seized by IS, Raqa saw some of a militants worst atrocities, from stonings and beheadings to a trade of sex slaves.
Iraq army retake village, TV hire on corner of Mosul
A member of a Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) looks on as he gathers with comrades in a city of Ain Issa, some 50 kilometres north of Raqa, on Nov 6, 2016. The US-backed fondness of Kurdish and Arab fighters launched on Nov 6 a long-awaited operation to constraint a Islamic State group’s de facto Syrian collateral Raqa. “The vital conflict to acquit Raqa and a vicinity has begun,” a commander with a Syrian Democratic Forces said, reading a matter during a press discussion in Ain Issa. PHOTO: AFP
Last month, a US counterclaim secretary pronounced a thought of coexisting operations opposite Mosul and Raqa “has been partial of a formulation for utterly a while”.
But a conflict for Raqa is distant some-more complicated. After 5 years of polite war, Syria is divided into a patchwork of fiefdoms, with President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, IS and a operation of antithesis army all holding territory. Dominated by a absolute Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), a SDF has in new months burning IS out of swathes of domain in northern Syria, including a flashpoint city of Manbij in August. Washington has promoted a SDF as a pivotal fan in a quarrel opposite IS, though a partnership is difficult by Turkey’s extreme antithesis to a YPG.
Ankara considers a company a “terrorist” group, and in Aug began a possess operation inside northern Syria, targeting both IS and a YPG. Sello pronounced a SDF had concluded with Washington “that there will be no purpose for Turkey or a armed factions associated with it in a operation” to constraint Raqa. In Jordan, however, President Barack Obama’s attach� Brett McGurk pronounced Washington was in “close contact” with Ankara over a assault.
“We are in tighten tighten hit with a Turkish allies and that is because a authority of corner chiefs (General Joseph Dunford) is in Ankara today,” he said.
“It is a formidable sourroundings in Syria to contend a least, though we are constantly in hold with all a opposite players.” In Mosul, Iraqi army were clearing eastern neighbourhoods, scarcely 3 weeks into a descent there.
Turkey fears Russia-US quarrel over Syria
“Resistance is really complicated and they (IS) have suffered vital losses,” Staff Lieutenant General Abdelghani al-Assadi of a chosen Counter-Terrorism Service told AFP. Soldiers from a army’s 9th Armoured Division also battled jihadists in a southeastern neighbourhood, an AFP match reported. IS has responded to a Mosul attack with a fibre of diversionary attacks.
It claimed shortcoming for self-murder bombings on Sunday in Tikrit and Samarra, dual cities north of Baghdad. Officials pronounced during slightest 25 people were killed and some-more than 50 wounded. Aid groups have uttered concerns for civilians trapped in both Mosul and Raqa, warning they might be used as tellurian shields.
More than a million people are believed to be in Mosul. Raqa had a race of some 240,000 before 2011 though some-more than 80,000 people have given fled there from other tools of Syria.
Article source: http://tribune.com.pk/story/1223381/us-backed-forces-launch-assault-syrian-capital/