ISIS is proving no match for the Kurdish-led ‘Syrian Democratic Forces’ (SDF) as the latter advanced on two flanks and wrestled control of five more villages on Sunday.
Following the capture of the Raqqa Prison Complex yesterday, the SDF also advanced in the eastern Raqqa countryside, taking control of the villages of Azman and Shuwayhan amid a total frontline collapse by ISIS’ forces in the region due to operation Euphrates Wrath.
Meanwhile, the US-backed SDF also continued its renewed northern Deir Ezzor offensive and simultaneously captured the villages of Bīr Shamawi, Fetatish, and Sabah al Khayr.
With Kurdish forces advancing from two flanks, SDF commanders seem to be conducting a pincer manuever which threatens to cut off an ISIS bulge in the region. Once this 35 kilometer ISIS-held strip of sparsely populated territory is captured, the SDF is expected to turn its attention on Raqqa city itself and attempt to secure the northern bank of the famed Euphrates River.
Although ISIS has lost ground at an unprecidented rate lately, its media outlets insist that Kurdish militants have suffered substantial casualties during operation Euphrates Wrath.
At the moment, Kurdish militants are held up 4 kilometers from the provincial capital of Raqqa and some 40 kilometers from Deir Ezzor city.
