‘Ferocious clashes’ over last Daesh enclave
Kurdish fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) pressed home a ferocious assault on Sunday on the last vestige of the former Daesh “caliphate” in northeast Syria.
The SDF advanced across farmland near the village of Baghouz, backed by US-led coalition airstrikes and artillery fire, and captured 41 positions from the remaining militants.
“Our forces are relying on direct combat with light weapons,” SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali said.
“The clashes are ferocious naturally because the terrorist group is defending its last stronghold.” Earlier, an SDF field commander reported “heavy clashes” as his fighters gained ground.
Bali said up to 600 militants were holed up in the enclave, including foreigners and other hardened fighters. Up to
1,000 civilians are also estimated to be inside, Bali said, and more than 20,000 civilians had fled to safety in the 10 days leading up to the renewed offensive.
“If we can, in a short time frame, get the civilians out or isolate them, I believe that the coming few days will witness the military end of the terrorist organization in this area,” he said.
President Donald Trump, who is planning to pull all US forces out of Syria, has said he expects a formal announcement this week that the coalition had reclaimed all the territory previously held by Daesh.
That would mark the end of a four-year global war to end the group’s territorial hold over large parts of Syria and Iraq where Daesh established its self-proclaimed “caliphate” in 2014.