Syria: US-backed forces announce bid to seize ISIS 'capital' Raqqa
By Angela Dewan, CNN
Updated 7:53 AM ET, Sun November 6, 2016
(CNN)US-backed militia groups in Syria said Sunday they're launching an operation to seize ISIS' de facto capital, Raqqa, in coordination with international coalition forces.
According to the statement, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) established a joint operations center Saturday night for the military campaign "Euphrates Rage," which includes multiple Arab, Kurdish and Turkmen militia groups.
The operation was announced just days after Iraqi forces entered the city of Mosul, where they are now in a fierce battle with ISIS militants.
"We are starting an operation to liberate Raqqa from ISIS... the operation will be done with American aerial cover," Brig. Gen. Talal Ali Selo, the spokesman for the SDF, told CNN Sunday.
"[The operation] will start by taking Raqqa countryside and then the goal is the city," Selo added.
US general: Fight for Mosul will get tougher
There has been no comment so far from US officials confirming the operation, but French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Sunday that recent talks between defense ministers from the United States and other major powers touched on organizing the plan to reconquer Mosul as well as Raqqa.
And last month, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter said an offensive to liberate Raqqa would come in a "matter of weeks" amid fears the terror group was plotting an attack somewhere around the world from inside the city.
US officials commented that there would possibly be "overlap" between the operations in Mosul and Raqqa.
The SDF also called on civilians of Raqqa -- who are believed to have minimal access to the media or Internet -- to avoid positions where ISIS fighters may gather as these will be considered strike targets "by our forces and by coalition forces."
Raqqa siege could be toughest yet
This wording is reminiscent of leaflets that were dropped on the ISIS stronghold of Mosul in Iraq before the battle to retake that city began October 17.
The statement also called on regional and international powers to provide logistical, moral and political support for the factions participating in this "liberation operation."
While the city of Raqqa is smaller than Mosul, the battle to retake it is expected to be fierce. It's ISIS' heartland and also sits in the middle of the country's ongoing civil war, which includes foreign actors such as the US and Russia.
The SDF alliance also includes the Kurdish YPG units, which Turkey considers terrorist groups.
Developing story - more to come
CNN's Schams Elwazer and Eyad Kourdi contributed to this report.
