SDF Clearing Raqqa of Mines and Sleeper Cells

U.S.-backed forces are clearing the city of Raqqa of mines and remaining sleeper cells one day after declaring victory over the so-called Islamic State in the former militant stronghold.

Talal Sello, a spokesman for the Syrian Democratic Forces, told Agence France-Presse in a report published Wednesday that clearing operations are now underway in the city.

The SDF announced on Tuesday that it had fully captured Raqqa from ISIS. The U.S. military, however, said only about 90 percent of the city had been retaken from the militant group.

A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition said that about 100 fighters still remained in Raqqa and he expected the SDF to face resistance from remnants of the militant group, according to Reuters.

“Clearance operations continue and we expect our Syrian Democratic Force partners to hit pockets of resistance as the final parts of the city is cleared,” Colonel Ryan Dillon said, according to Reuters.

Brett McGurk, the top U.S. envoy for the international coalition fighting ISIS, said that the U.S. will help the SDF clear explosives and restore services in the city, according to the Associated Press.

The SDF has been battling ISIS in Raqqa since June.

Citing the United Kingdom-based monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, (SOHR), AFP said that 3,250 people, including some 1,130 civilians, have been killed since the start of the campaign.

The capture of Raqqa, once the de-facto capital of ISIS in Syria, deals a big blow to the group, as it continues to lose large swaths of territory across Syria.

ISIS Launches Counterattack Near Iraqi Border

ISIS launched a fierce attack on government forces near the Syrian-Iraqi border on Tuesday, the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported.

ISIS attacked government positions in the Wadi al-Waer area, east of Homs, killing some 19 pro-government fighters, the SOHR said.

Pro-government forces retreated from their positions near the Wadi al-Waer dam after explosions targeted their forces, according to the monitoring group.

The attack comes days after the government announced the capture of al-Mayadeen – one of ISIS’s main strongholds in Deir Ezzor province.

Government Expands Control Over Deir Ezzor City

The Syrian government captured at least three districts in Deir Ezzor city from ISIS on Tuesday, bringing most of the provincial capital under government control, the SOHR reported.

Tuesday’s advance brings roughly 92 percent of Deir Ezzor city under government control, according to the monitoring group.

Pro-government forces also launched an assault against ISIS in the al-Rasafa, al-Ommal and al-Sina’a neighborhoods on Tuesday in an attempt to drive militants from their last pockets in the city.

The SOHR says that ISIS is currently besieged in Deir Ezzor’s provincial capital.

Recommended Reads

• The Washington Post: The Defeat of ISIS in Raqqa Tests U.S. Commitment to Syrian Kurds
• The New Yorker: The Ignominious End of the ISIS Caliphate
• The Associated Press: Al-Qaida Set to Gain as Islamic State Disintegrates
• Reuters: After Victory in Raqqa Over I.S., Kurds Face Tricky Peace
• The Associated Press: AP News Guide: Instability Set to Follow I.S. Collapse