Civilians flee IS bastion in Syria as US-backed forces close in

PARIS: About 10 000 civilians have fled to a camp just north of the Islamic State (IS) bastion of Raqqa with hundreds more arriving each day as the battle for the city nears, Medecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said yesterday.

Residents are escaping Raqqa under cover of night as US-backed forces close in, taking their chances against minefields and hostile fighters rather than risking death in a major battle expected to begin soon.

“It is not a massive exodus, but about 800 people are arriving in Ain Issa every day,” Natalie Roberts, an emergency doctor from MSF France who had just returned from the region, told reporters.

The camp in Ain Issa village is run by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, made up predominantly of Kurdish fighters, who have arrived to within 3km of Raqqa and plan to press on with the assault on IS. The camp has expanded to beyond its 6 000-person capacity, Roberts said. Conditions had deteriorated in the heat.

The UN and other aid groups had yet to establish themselves in the zone, she said. MSF is providing basic care including vaccinations, maternity care and treatment of chronic conditions.

People with war wounds, mostly caused by mines, are being sent to three MSF hospitals further north.

It is unclear how many people remain in Raqqa, IS’s Syrian base of operations for more than three years and a major symbol of the cross-border “caliphate” in Iraq and Syria. The city’s population was estimated at 200 000 before the recent departures.

Roberts said that coalition bombing in Raqqa had appeared to be well targeted so far, but that the city’s hospitals would not be equipped to handle the sort of injuries resulting from an intensification.