Raqqa: IS 'capital' falls to US-backed Syrian forces

[Valin]

BBC

Oct. 17 2017

 

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) spokesman Talal Sello said the fighting was over after a four-month assault.

Clearing operations were now under way to uncover any jihadist sleeper cells and remove landmines, he added.

However, a US military spokesman later said he could only confirm that about 90% of the city had been cleared.

Islamic State (IS) made Raqqa the headquarters of its self-styled "caliphate" in early 2014, implementing an extreme interpretation of Islamic law and using beheadings, crucifixions and torture to terrorise residents who opposed its rule.

The city also became home to thousands of jihadists from around the world who heeded a call to migrate there by IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

 

 

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Prophecy

[Valin]

 

[Valin]

ISIS Is Now Caught Between Raqqa and a Hard Place

Jim Geraghty

October 18, 2017

 

Outstanding news as the week progresses:

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Newsweek looks at recent presidential boasting about ISIS and it’s easy to get the sense that the publication would love to rebuke Donald Trump for taking credit for something he did not influence. But the magazine can’t quite dismiss all of the evidence that the momentum of battle has shifted in the past year. Maybe that’s a result of presidential decisions, or perhaps Trump’s decision to defer to his generals on most of the details. Either way, Trump hasn’t loused it up, and he’s in position to reap the accolades.

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* It is worth noting that while controlling swaths of territory made ISIS distinct, it was not the only feature that made it dangerous. The New York Times talks to terrorism experts and concludes that the group will probably refocus its efforts on the method that worries us the most, attacks in Western countries:

 

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* The/This Battle May Be Won But The War Goes On

 

"The war on terror we fight today is a generational struggle that will continue long after you and I have turned our duties over to others,"

President George W Bush 2007 State of the Union address.

[Valin]

Woman Rips Off Oppressive Garments as Raqqa Liberated From ISIS

“All women living under the reign of IS were forced to wear the loose black outer garment, known as an abaya, as part of the terror group’s strict interpretation of Islamic sharia law.”

Ryan Saavedra

Oct. 20 2017

 

A woman in Raqqa ripped off her black outer garment that she was forced to wear by ISIS militants and celebrated as US-backed forces liberated the Syrian city on Saturday.

A video, posted by the People’s Defense Units (YPG) on Saturday, shows a woman who had lived under oppression from Islamic terrorists enter a state of pure joy as ISIS was driven completely out of the city.

The woman began hugging the US-backed Kurdish forces as she thanked them and offered them prayers along with members of her family, The Times Of Israel reported.

 

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