U.S.-backed forces on Friday advanced deeper into areas of north of Raqqa, continuing their march to the edge of the de facto capital of Islamic State in Syria.
On the fourth day of the offensive, the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, took control of at least 10 villages and advanced 15 kilometers southward as U.S.-led coalition airstrikes targeted positions in nearby localities.
“The process is ongoing,” Rojda Judi, a female Kurdish commander who leads the operation on the ground, told VOA. “But the only thing that is slowing us is IS has left so many mines behind. We have to clear off any area before we fully step in.”
The Kurdish-led SDF aims to close in on IS by surrounding IS-held territories from different directions, local officials said.
“We are fighting Daesh on three fronts in northern Raqqa,” said Naser Mansoor, a Kurdish official in Syria, using the Arabic name for IS.
“In some areas they [IS] just retreat, and in other areas they stay to fight,” he told VOA via phone from Syria. “But we have killed dozens of them so far.”
Mansoor said that the level of coordination between the international coalition and local forces had been advanced and that coalition airstrikes were key to undermining IS on the ground.
A VOA reporter embedded with the SDF on the front line said that anti-IS forces are using midrange and heavy weapons against the militants. IS is firing back, using mortar rounds.
While the ongoing battles are some 40 kilometers away from Raqqa, IS is preparing for battle inside the city by digging trenches and building berms, local news reports said Friday.