UPDATE 1: The Syrian Democratic Forces have established a full contol over Raqqah, according to multiple sources. An official SDF satement is expected later today.
Source: https://twitter.com/OIRSpox
On Tuesday, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) allegedly established a full control over the city Raqqah. The initial reports on the issue appeared at the website of the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The mainstream media and pro-SDF media activists widely spread the SOHR’s claims.
“The fall of Raqqa city, where Islamic State staged euphoric parades after its string of lightning victories in 2014, is a potent symbol of the jihadist movement’s collapsing fortunes. From the city, the group planned attacks abroad.
The SDF, backed by a U.S.-led international alliance, has been fighting Islamic State inside Raqqa since June.
Another Reuters witness said militia fighters celebrated in the streets, chanting slogans from their vehicles.
A group of militia fighters and commanders clasped their arms round each other, smiling, in a battle-scarred landscape of rubble and ruined buildings at a public square.
The flag in the stadium and others waved in the city streets bore the yellow background and red emblem of the Kurdish YPG, the strongest militia in the SDF,” Reuters reports on the issue.
Reuters also quoted a spokesman for the US-led coalition, Army Colonel Ryan Dillon: “We do still know there are still IEDs and booby traps in and amongst the areas that ISIS once held, so the SDF will continue to clear deliberately through areas,” the colonel said.
However, according to Dilon’s statement in Twitter, the SDF controls only 90% of Raqqah city after the group has seized al-Naim roundabout.
#SDF control 90% of #Raqqa; fully take Al-Naim circle, once infamous #ISIS setting for public executions/murder. #defeatDaesh @CJTFOIR pic.twitter.com/LHVSpMc4Qi
— OIR Spokesman (@OIRSpox) 17 October 2017
Earlier this week, the SDF seized al-Naim and al-Dallah roundabouts, the national hospital, the munitipal stadium and many other areas in the northern and eastern parts of the city.
Thus, the real situation in the city remains unclear. The ISIS defense likely collapsed inside the city center. However, this does not mean that the SDF already has a full control over Raqqah.
The map below shows an alleged military situation in Raqqah city prior to the claims that the SDF took full control over it:
Click to see the full-size map
1 milestone behind
Patrick Cockburn, who actually does foreign correspondence, points out the obvious, that ISIS constructed a maze of underground tunnels https://www.counterpunch.org/2017/10/13/underground-in-raqqa/ So that ISIS can pop up in areas that appear conquered. This doesn’t make Raqqa invincible but it can delay things as the area that is under their control is not as clear cut as the maps show. It is really a matter of their will to fight. They could also use the tunnels as an avenue to escape if they give up on the martyrdom idea.
BTW look at the buildings in the background, they look partly damaged. I wonder if they had to try to find a suitable backdrop to even find those. I’d love to see a comprehensive survey of what Raqqa looks like now.
Is correct and happend in Tabqah.
That is why SDF not only has a frontline but also many stationed throughout liberated areas, also searching house by house and blocking or mining exits.
ISIS let its SDF brothers take Raqqah so they can go to Deir Ezzor province to fight ISIS’ only real enemy in Syria, the Damascus government.
A classic from 2014:
“Islamic Front convoy passing through YPG checkpoint” http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=c9c_1402227862#5vC6vtFEXAJMX3pO.99
to fight isis!
Its fine with me Kurds let Jihadists kill Jihadist in that link. Shows kurds are not stupid. In 2014 they also were very weak…. ……………………………………………
The “let” was a military choise by ISIS. They saw they could not defend both.
But I also see that SDF has killed many from the ones, which were left and well fortified. Very strange You dont see SDF as a real enemy. Thats against all facts.
Hard to expect the little one even growing well can take, what Assads should have kept. After all they today posses estimated 20% of the territory and 20% of the population if all inhabitants was there.
But it true they have a very different attitude. They dont scream and shout all the time how good they are and also dont lie about how many they kill and own loses, and dont evaporate all stupidity and spedables under a carpet as well.
Its just evil talk al the way. When Raqqa was still opend, they were blamed for “letting ISIS out to SAA”. When it was closed they were blamed killing civilians and ISIS were hardly there.
The same song about blocking. Here we heard fx SAA almost besieged Al Bab themselves. Well they did not even reach it and they came close to it well covered by YPG.
Tabqa: They are vlocking us. Well SDF already had taken Tabqa. And they will block us and take our oilfields. None of that happend.
And BIIIG letters for SOUTH OF RAQQÀ even Eufrat was between and not a single from there came out to attack them, because SDF already had the border at that side too. And OK for being airstriked and being blamed for that plane was short down right away.
Next by several others could be SAA blaming SDF not to help SAA at DEZ. So when they arrive, they are artillery striked as well as blamed for taking oilfields.
SDF has even being blamed for not giving Assads Omar Oilfield even ISIS has it !!!!
Raqqa is so yesterday’s news. It’s strategic importance was nil and is nil, the Kurds let themselves be bled and countless civilians died so Western politicians could have a soundbyte moment in the news. The frontline already moved on which makes this a Pyrrhic victory.
Grapes are sour, it seems.
SDF could not let IS threaten their underside and this makes for natural borders and creates an ally, like Manbij.
The end of fighting lets SDF redeploy a substantial part of their forces towards other areas.
Have fun with your ruined useless city. It means nothing. Does capturing Raqqa in any way determine the future of Syria? Does it aid the future of the SDF in any way?
The SDF has wasted a lot of manpower, resources and prestige to take Raqqa, and gotten a lot of people killed to take a useless city. They did it because it pleased their American masters, who could claim a victory over the Caliphate. Who are already losing interest in the SDF cause and just thrown the Iraqi Kurds under the bridge. Meanwhile, while the SDF bled in Raqqa, the SAA took Central Syria and reached Deir Ezzor, forcing the SDF to redeploy into Eastern Syria. Had the SDF just encircled Raqqa and left the ISIS fighters there to rot they could have taken Central Syria instead. That’s what I would have done.
Celebrate the SDF’s useless Pyrrhic victory, cheer as they make their move into the Omar oilfields. Once the US inevitable throws them under the bridge too it will make it all the more sweeter when the SDF leaders come crawling back for forgiveness. Like a modern day Emperor Henry IV crawling to Canossa. To Pope Putin.
Only enemies write like that.
SAA could have been in Deir El Zor at least half a year ago. in stead of playing strange ocotpussy like to be eaten, because we have to many soldiers and russia send us oil for free.
Some might think ISIS hired Your Generals for You and got payed well too.
They could have been there earlier ago, if it weren’t for Al Qaida launching yet another Hama offensive. Or a Daraa offensive. It’s almost like those Western backed socalled moderates came to the aid of ISIS.
Or are you referring to the 2016 Tayba offensive? That was stupid, I agree. But then again half of Aleppo was still in Jihadi hands, with yet another Hama offensive that year as well. And the battle of Ramouseh artillery academy. The SAA was pretty much tied up on all other fronts to come to the aid of Deir Ezzor at that time. It’s basically the massive defeat it managed to inflict on the Jihadis in Aleppo that finally allowed the SAA to free up enough troops to finally go after ISIS and relieve Deir Ezzor. Anything before taking East Aleppo was doomed to fail.
Probably the reason why the West shed so many crocodile tears over Aleppo. They knew that once the SAA gained full control over that city the strategic situation would change for the whole of Syria in favor of the regime, Iran and Russia. Which it has.
So says hooligans of Damaskus & Ankara, when they have lost.
“strategic importance” – according to what ?
So what about the rest of the more then 400.000 dead and the many participaters for the next handicap Olympics.
As usual westerns are blamed in the 1.000.001 arabic night of dark smelling excuses and united they stand.
“The Syrian Democratic Forces Took Full Contol Over Raqqah City” Good. Now they better get to rebuilding the city too, since they leveled it in the process.
Everybody has to help and more talked about peace can be made in a better way then just kill all opposition by central power in Damaskus.
Grapes are sour to SF and most of the ranting commenters do not have the “guts” to say : Congrats, well done.
So I am saying it here.
Now for the countryside of DeZ and build up reserves to aid Yezidis again if necessary and, when Erdogan makes his next major blunder, to liberate the new turkish colony of Azaz.
At the same time, civil authorities can start the reconstruction of Raqqah, after demining.
If that’s true then it’s indeed good news for the people in Raqqa. They will be no longer stuck between two edges of scissors.
It’s another step to clearing Syria of ISIS. However, the true intentions of PKK will remain to be seen.
PKK`s are in Turkey. Hard to solve anything if people are on Your knowledge level.
Meh, Syrian Kurdish militia are spin-off of PKK, Basically the same thing.
Like HTS which is Al-Qaida’s spin-off, meaning the same thing.
yet 27 civilians died per day in Raqqa! It wasn’t so great for them! If they only knew that those helping them were also funding the terrorists!
Lets make it clear Syrian legitimate government has never apointed SDF their are USA Syrian Democratic Terrorist. Also known as USA back Forces on Syrian soil which is evil force’s.Let UN security failure please inform USA not confuse legitimate Syrian sovereign citizens with the USA own created terrorist organizations.
Im sure UN will, If Assads will dollow the stacks of papers about Syria and its not following human rights at all.
That also would make, that SDF didnt need to be their own as well as many Jihadists would came down and many refugges would feel themselves safe and protected in Syria.
Right from the beginning ISIS and SDF we’re working together just to kill time.Now that SAA is liberating oilfields their stop the civilian attack in Raqqa and redeploy to Deir ezzor.Just to attack SAA.
You are an imbecil to say that
You are one that is why you worship devil.USA puppet.Control with USA dollars.
Like there was no Kobani and many other fights bewtween isis and sdf. You are an imbecil
SDF didn’t exist at the time of Kobani. It was the YPG and they had not been helped by the US yet nor did they control most of the land border. Assadists and the YPG shared major war goals for their own reasons.. Everything is different now.
The pattern of this type of proxy war is constant reforming of coalitions. Former FSA or Daesh units have seen the writing on the wall and have every reason to preserve their lives and take down the Black Flag. Join the SDF and you go from terrorist fighter marked for death with no escape route to the new freedom fighters.
the US did help with kobani
Much of that is well decriebed in the real world. US made most of the hard bombardment, which make parts of Kobani to ruins. They also made hard presure to Turkey to allow the profeesionals from PKK to help YPG at Kobane.
You are blind Trumps lap dog.Still behave like White people tea maker.Supporting Nato terrorist.
I make tea for myself then ;)
It is good to agree and disagree thank you now let’s focus on new development in Syria.
that sounds more reasonable. Lets hope they will have a peacefull solution like in kirkuk
Long away from any facts about the subject. You worship talking about cars when everybody else talk about roads or worse.
No, they wasnt.
Assads made the base for ISIS letting many of their leaders out from his jail to structure and fight FSA, Qaida and like that.
Thats fast came out of his hands, because they attacked him too – and now supported by USA, Saudi & Qatar.
Therefore the desparate Assad called in Russia, Hesbollah and Iran.
When ISIS came put of hands of USA(still with support from the Jihadists og Saudi & Qatar) kurds were almost thrown out of Syria and into Turkey(as well as 2 mio. others).
Not before that Kurds(later SDF) was anythig usefull on the map. SDF has been fighting to get the landpart of theirs back by admintage by Assads to be a milisia for it.
So they were armed and trained by PKK as Guerilla and by USA as advanced infantery with only light weapons against ISIS.
Its very impresing You can see some hardheaded jihadists reading the Choran as they wish some, which says Marxisme include Islam and others reduced to ptivate matter.
Impressing …
SAA seem to be clearing from the East and going backwards to the West! Cause SDF are anti Syrian Government ??
You are a very good example for making war and the wrong ones gets killed.
Raqqah was a city of 300,000 people fro different ethnic backgrounds; This is the same city which coalitions forces were carpet bombing to get rid of terrorists, which never tackled SDF forces, so what does that tell you about the both of them? SDF and the terrorists+U$A are in in the same camp camp so, Raqqah is not not liberated until the SAA liberared their country. Raqqah will be another Kirkuk/Erbil and Ninenvah in Iraq. SDF is not Syrian;It is a U$A Kurdish suppported front which is hates non KURDS.