U.S.-backed fighters seize part of militants’ ‘capital’
BEIRUT — A U.S.backed Syrian opposition force said Sunday that it has captured a northwestern neighborhood of the Islamic State group’s de-facto capital of Raqqa, the second district to fall since the group opened a wide offensive to gain control of the city.
The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces said its fighters captured the neighborhood of Romaniah after two days of fighting that left 12 Islamic State gunmen dead, including a commander known as Abu Khattab al-Tunsi.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said SDF fighters now control Romaniah and the eastern neighborhood of Mashlab. The fighters have also entered Raqqa’s western neighborhood of Sabahiya and the industrial district in the east.
Raqqa was among the first cities captured by the Islamic State, in January 2014, and has been the home of some of the group’s most prominent leaders. The battle for the city is expected to be extended and bloody, and could mark a major turning point in the war against the extremists.
Islamic State has been fortifying its positions in Raqqa for months, setting up barriers and hanging sheets of cloth over main streets to provide cover from aerial surveillance. A belt of land mines and militant checkpoints circle the city.
SDF fighters began their offensive on the city of Raqqa on Tuesday under the cover of air strikes by the U.S.-led coalition.
The Islamic Statelinked Aamaq news agency said the city was subjected to intense air strikes and shelling by the SDF and the U.S.-led coalition, releasing a video that showed wide destruction in one of the neighborhoods. The video also showed severely wounded men and children being rushed to hospitals.
In southern Syria, Jordan said its border guards killed five suspected infiltrators approaching the kingdom’s border from Syria in a pickup truck and two motorcycles. Jordan has expressed concern that recent offensives will push some of the militants closer to the kingdom’s border.