Islamic State jihadists in Raqa ramp up counter-attacks
RAQA, Syria: As Islamic State group fighters steadily lose chunks of their Syrian bastion Raqa to a US-backed force, the jihadists are ramping up the ferocity of their counter-attacks.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) first broke into Raqa in early June and have advanced in a pincer-like motion towards the heart of the city.
The alliance’s Arab and Kurdish fighters now hold half of Raqa, but as they tighten the noose around IS, the jihadist group appears to be lashing out.
“The closer we get to the city centre, the harder IS defends itself, because it’s completely besieged,” said Davram Dersem, an SDF field commander.
To defend Raqa, IS has deployed a barrage of car bombs, suicide bombers, weaponised drones, snipers, and mines scattered across the city.
“They’re cornered like a wounded animal. Raqa is their main stronghold – they’re not going to abandon it easily,” Dersem added.
The Kurdish commander spoke to AFP in the western Raqa neighbourhood of al-Daraiya.
Mortar shells crashed into surrounding neighbourhoods, which were also hit by the occasional air strike.
After IS captured Raqa in 2014, the group transformed the city into a symbol of its most macabre practices, including public beheadings. Raqa was also thought to have been used as a hub for planning attacks overseas.
Now, much of it has been destroyed by the fierce fighting and US-led air strikes. Roofs have collapsed and streets are littered with rubble, metal, and glass.
In the adjacent district of Massaken al-Dubbat, 24-year-old SDF fighter Talal Sharif pointed at a devastated row of two-storey homes ahead.
“All of this destruction, it’s because of their car bombs. There have been at least four in each of these streets,” Sharif told AFP.
“Little by little, they’re being suffocated in Raqa. This is why they’re resisting.” — AFP