US-backed forces breach wall around IS-held Raqqa in Syria

U.S.-backed forces in Syria have breached the wall around Raqqa’s Old City, the U.S. military said on Tuesday, marking a major advance in the weeks-old battle to drive Islamic State militants out of their self-declared capital.

The U.S. Central Command said the coalition struck two “small portions” of the Rafiqah Wall, allowing the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces “to advance into the most heavily fortified portion” of the city, bypassing booby traps and snipers. It said the strikes left most of the 2,500meter (yard) wall intact.

The head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, Rami Abdurrahman, said the breaching of the wall was the most important development to date in the battle for Raqqa. He said three SDF units advanced toward the wall under air cover, breaking through the IS defences, and that heavy clashes were underway.

Footage provided by the SDF showed their fighters roaming Qasr al-Banat, a historic quarter inside Raqqa’s Old City. Another unit entered through the so-called Baghdad Gate, opening up a second front inside the Old City.

Brett McGurk, the top U.S. envoy for the international coalition against the Islamic State group, hailed the breach, saying it was a “key milestone” in the campaign to seize the IS stronghold.

The U.S. military said IS fighters were using the historic wall as a fighting position, and had planted explosives at several openings. It said coalition forces were making every effort to protect civilians and preserve the historic sites.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces launched a multi-pronged assault on Raqqa in early June, after securing the surrounding countryside. On Sunday, the U.S.-backed fighters crossed the Euphrates River on the southern edge of the city, completing its encirclement.