Syria/Lebanon — The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said on Tuesday it has launched a battle to capture Raqqa, Islamic State’s de facto Syrian capital, piling pressure on the jihadists whose self-declared caliphate is in retreat across Syria and Iraq. SDF spokesman Talal Silo told Reuters the operation started on Monday and the fighting would be "fierce because Daesh [Islamic State] will die to defend their so-called capital". The assault overlaps with the final stages of the US-backed attack to recapture the Iraqi city of Mosul from Islamic State, and follows months of advances to the north, east and west of Raqqa by the SDF, which includes Arab and Kurdish militias. Islamic State captured Raqqa from rebel groups in 2014 and has used it as an operations base to plan attacks in the West. Silo said the assault began from the north, east and west of the city, which is bordered to the south by the River Euphrates. The commander of the Raqqa campaign, Rojda Felat, told Reuters ...
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