|
Fighters in Syria's Raqa Prepare for Civilian Handover
[An Nahar] US-backed forces who captured Raqa from the Islamic State...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not reallyMoslems.... group prepared Thursday to hand the Syrian city over to a civilian authority, with some of their fighters already headed to the next battle. Inside the city, positions that had long been manned by fighters of the Kurdish-Arab Syrian Democratic Forces were abandoned, though some remained in the central al-Naim square, dancing and ululating as they celebrated their victory. The SDF battled for more than four months, with US-led coalition support, to capture the city that was once the de facto Syrian capital of IS's self-styled "caliphate". They announced the end of combat on Tuesday, though operations to clear explosives and seek out sleeper cells were ongoing. Raqa's capture leaves the jihadists with little remaining territory in Syria, most of it in neighbouring Deir Ezzor province, where some SDF fighters were already headed to continue the campaign. "Some of the forces withdrew, others will remain in the city until we finish the minor combing operations, then the city will be handed over to the civil council," said SDF commander Rojda Felat. "After the end of military operations, a large part of the forces have moved out of Raqa to other areas, including Deir Ezzor," added Mustefa Bali, front man for the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the main component of the SDF. SDF front man Talal Sello said two days of mopping-up operations had so far uncovered no additional IS fighters, but that interrogations of those who were captured or surrendered during the battle were ongoing. "SDF intelligence is investigating them, including a number of foreigners," he told AFP. Responsibility for the city, which lies in ruins and empty of civilians, will be assumed by the Raqa Civil Council, a body of local officials formed six months ago. The official handover is expected to come as early as Friday, but the body has already spent months working on reconstruction plans. Posted by: Fred 2017-10-20 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=499908 |