Islamic State fighting on 4 fronts in Iraq, Syria
BEIRUT — Syrian troops reached the edge of the northern province of Raqqa on Saturday, home to the de facto capital of the Islamic State group’s self-styled caliphate, in a push that leaves the extremists fighting fierce battles on four fronts in Syria and neighboring Iraq.
The Islamic State, which controls large swaths of territory in both countries, is fighting Syrian troops, U.S.-backed fighters and opposition militants in northern Syria and is facing an offensive by Iraqi government forces on their stronghold of Fallujah.
The Syrian government has had no presence in Raqqa since August 2014, when the Islamic State captured the Tabqa air base. The provincial capital, Raqqa, became the militants’ first city.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian troops reached the “administrative border” of Raqqa province under the cover of Russian airstrikes. It said that during three days of fighting 26 Islamic State fighters and nine troops and pro-government gunmen were killed.
Syrian troops began their advance toward the province Wednesday, the same day that U.S.-backed forces launched an attack on the Islamic State stronghold of Manbij, some 72 miles northwest of Raqqa. It is unclear if the attacks were coordinated.
The U.S.-backed predominantly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces advanced closer on Saturday to Manbij, which lies on a key supply route linking the Turkish border to the city of Raqqa.
The Observatory said SDF fighters had captured 34 villages near Manbij. Another activist group, the Local Coordination Committees, said the fighting is now concentrated on the south of the town.
The Islamic State is also engaged in fierce battles for the rebel-held stronghold of Marea, some 43 miles west of Manbij. The Islamic State has surrounded Marea on three sides but has failed to capture the city, under control of rebels and fighters from the al-Qaida-affiliated Nusra Front.
While battles rage in Raqqa province, Manbij and Marea, Islamic State fighters are also coming under fire in their Iraqi stronghold of Fallujah. Iraqi forces launched their offensive on the city almost two weeks ago and say they have reached the edge of town.
Meanwhile, violence in and around the contested northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest, claimed more lives Saturday. The city has been the scene of fierce fighting, even during a truce brokered by the U.S. and Russia that went into effect in late February and collapsed weeks later.
The Russian military’s Reconciliation Center in Syria saidthe Nusra Front heavily shelled several government-held neighborhoods in the city.
Syrian state TV said the shelling of government-held parts of Aleppo killed 22 people and wounded 23, while opposition activists said dozens were killed or wounded in rebel-held neighborhoods.