(Zaman Al Wasl)- Clashes have intensified between ISIS and U.S.-backed forces in the eastern and western neighborhoods of Raqqa city amid participating of foreign force specialized in Guerrillas war backing the Kurdish–led fighters, local activists said Tuesday.
Anarkiya movement, mostly formed by international mercenaries, is fighting alongside with the Syrian Democratic Force, according to photos posted by Washington-backed group.
The two-week-old offensive to liberate the city of Raqqa is expected to last for months, US task command and analysts say.
The SDF, a group of Kurdish and Arab militias supported by a U.S.-led coalition, began to attack Raqqa two weeks ago to take it from the jihadists. The SDF, supported by heavy coalition air strikes, have taken territory to the west, east and north of the city.
The SDF took neighborhood of Roumaniya, Sinaa, al-Mashlab and parts of al-Sebahiya. As well they took the villages of al-Dhaher and al-Sihl al-Gharbi in the western countryside
Meanwhile, Syrian regime troops and their allies have steadily positioned themselves in key areas on the flanks of the U.S.-led coalition battle for the ISIS self-declared capital of Raqqa.
They are attempting to become an indispensable player in uprooting the militants from Syria entirely, AP said.
As the U.S. has intensified its fight against ISIS in Syria, Assad and his trusted allies of Russia and Iran are increasingly asserting themselves. A Syrian military offensive has unfolded on several fronts, coupled with Russian airstrikes and a show of force by Iran, which fired ballistic missiles on an ISIS stronghold this week and pushed militias that it sponsors deeper into the battlefield.
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