Islamic State driven out of its ‘capital’
US-backed alliance captures Raqqa after five-month battle in symbolic blow to ‘caliphate’
American-backed forces have captured the self-declared capital of Islamic State, Raqqa, a major blow for the militant group as it fights for survival on all sides.
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed militia of Syrian Kurds and Arabs, confirmed yesterday it had taken control of the northern Syrian city, which has been under IS control for over three years, after months of fierce fighting.
While US Central Command stopped short of declaring total victory yesterday, in a phone call to The New York Times, SDF spokesman Talal Sello said the military operation “is now over”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
UK-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates 3,250 people were killed in the five-month battle to retake the city.
Earlier yesterday, the SDF claimed it had cleared the last two major IS positions in Raqqa - the municipal stadium and the National Hospital.
Reuters news agency reported that fighters raised the flag of Popular Protection Units, a Kurdish militia that dominates the SDF, inside the stadium and celebrated in the streets and chanted slogans from their vehicles.
Al Jazeera’s Hashem Ahelbarra, reporting from Turkey, said clean-up operations were now underway after the bloody battle.
“Hundreds of SDF fighters, waving yellow flags, are now entering the city of Raqqa. They have killed dozens of fighters. They are deploying more troops in the city to try to clear mines, explosives,” Ahelbarra said.
“Destroyed and depopulated, Raqqa faces an uncertain political future,” says Mariya Petkova for Al Jazeera. The humanitarian Reach initiative estimates less than 1% of Raqqa’s 300,000 pre-war population remains in a city with no electricity or fresh water.
The US and SDF have pledged to hand over the city to civilian rule, “but the shape and political make-up of this civilian entity remain unclear [while] various ethnic, tribal and geopolitical factors will complicate the handover”, says Petkova.
Raqqa became the first major city to fall to IS fighters in early 2014, just months after it was captured from the Syrian government by rebels fighting in the civil war.
Declared the headquarters of a “caliphate”, Raqqa was “transformed by the group, which implemented an extreme interpretation of Islamic law and used beheadings, crucifixions and torture to terrorise residents who opposed its rule”, recalls the BBC.
The defeat of IS in Raqqa “is a symbol of the terror group’s decline”, says CNN. It now controls just a small strip of territory along the Euphrates river in northern Syria - and has no major city in its grip.
The Independent notes that “the city was used as a base for the group to plan attacks abroad” and its fall has prompted the New York Times to suggest IS “is already preparing for a new phase, morphing back into the kind of underground insurgency it started as, taking round among disaffected Sunni populations that were willing to tolerate, if not wholeheartedly embrace, its ultraconservative brand of Islam”.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How to enjoy the Proms 2024
The Week Recommends This year's concert highlights, how to buy tickets, and where to watch and listen
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
Why more men are wearing jewellery
The Week Recommends Pop culture is boosting interest in earrings and necklaces, alongside classic tie pins and lapel pins
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
7 magnificent hotels to visit before the summer crowds descend
The Week Recommends Have beach time in the Dominican Republic or a spa day in Saint-Tropez
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
How would we know if World War Three had started?
Today's Big Question With conflicts in Ukraine, Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific, the 'spark' that could ignite all-out war 'already exists'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The issue of women and conscription
Under the radar Ukraine military adviser hints at widening draft to women, as other countries weigh defence options amid global insecurity
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Why is Islamic State targeting Russia?
Today's Big Question Islamist terror group's attack on 'soft target' in Moscow was driven in part by 'opportunity and personnel'
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's unconventional approach to reconstruction
Under the radar Digitally savvy nation uses popular app to file compensation claims, access funds and rebuild destroyed homes
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Will Ukraine's leadership reset work?
Today's Big Question Zelenskyy hints at ousting of popular military chief, but risks backlash amid dwindling munitions, delayed funding and Russian bombardment
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Imran Khan sentenced to 10 years: how powerful is Pakistan's military?
Today's Big Question The country's armed forces ignore country's economic woes, control its institutions and, critics say, engineer election results
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
What is Iran's endgame?
Today's Big Question Tehran seeks to supplant US and Saudi Arabia as dominant power in Middle East while forcing Israel to end Gaza war
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Israel proposes two-month pause in Gaza war in exchange for all Hamas hostages
Speed Read Deal doesn't include an agreement to end war, but might be 'the only path that could lead to a ceasefire', said US officials
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published