Syrian Troops Advance on Raqqa, as Islamic State Militants Pressed on Four Fronts

Government forces close in on extremists’ de facto capital as Iraqi forces, rebels and al Qaeda Affiliate Nusra Front attack ISIS in other areas

BEIRUT—Syrian troops on Saturday reached the edge of the northern province of Raqqa, home to the de facto capital of Islamic State militant group’s self-styled caliphate, in a push that leaves the extremists fighting fierce battles on four fronts in Syria and neighboring Iraq.

Islamic State, which is also known by the acronyms ISIS and ISIL, controls large swaths of territory in both countries and is fighting Syrian troops, U.S.-backed fighters and opposition militants in northern Syria. It also is battling an offensive by Iraqi government forces on its stronghold of Fallujah.

The Syrian government hasn’t had a presence in Raqqa since August 2014, when Islamic State fighters captured the Tabqa air base and killed scores of government soldiers. The provincial capital, Raqqa, became the first city under the militants’ control.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian troops reached the “administrative border” of Raqqa province under the cover of Russian airstrikes. It said that during three days of fighting 26 Islamic State fighters and nine Syian troops and pro-government gunmen were killed.


Syrian troops began their advance toward the province on Wednesday, the same day U.S.-backed forces launched an attack on the militant stronghold of Manbij, some 72 miles to the northwest of Raqqa. It is unclear if the attacks were coordinated.


The U.S.-backed predominantly Kurdish Syria Democratic Forces on Saturday advanced closer to Manbij, which lies on a key supply route linking the Turkish border to the city of Raqqa.

The Observatory said SDF fighters had captured 34 villages near Manbij. Another activist group, the Local Coordination Committees, said the fighting is now concentrated on the south of the town.

Islamic State fighters are also engaged in fierce battles for the rebel-held stronghold of Marea, a town west of Manbij. Islamic State has surrounded Marea on three sides but has failed to capture the city, which is under control of Syrian rebels and fighters from the al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front. “The fighting is very intense on three fronts in Marea,” said opposition activist Baraa al-Halaby, who is based in northern Syria.

While battles raged in Raqqa province, Manbij and Marea, Islamic State fighters were also under fire in their Iraqi stronghold of Fallujah. Iraqi forces launched their offensive on the city almost two weeks ago and say they have reached the edge of town.

On the city’s northern edge, Iraq’s military said Islamic State had been pushed out of the neighborhood of Saqlawiya on Saturday. It also said an Iraqi flag had been raised above the area.

The main push into the city center has been slow, however. Heavy militant counterattacks and concerns for the tens of thousands of civilians trapped inside the city have slowed Iraq’s elite counterterrorism troops, who are leading the push, according to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider alAbadi.

Meanwhile, violence in and around the contested northern city of Aleppo, Syria’s largest and once commercial center, claimed more lives on Saturday. The city has been the scene of fierce fighting, even during a truce brokered by the U.S. and Russia that went into effect in late February and collapsed weeks later.

The Russian military’s Reconciliation Center in Syria said the Nusra Front heavily shelled several government-held neighborhoods of the city.

Syrian state TV said the shelling of government-held parts of contested Aleppo killed 22 and wounded 23 people, while opposition activists said dozens were killed or wounded in rebel-held neighborhoods.

Intense fighting also took place south of Aleppo, where insurgents led by the Nusra Front attacked Syrian army position near the Khan Touman area, according to the Observatory and the activist, al-Halaby. “The aim of the attack south of Aleppo is to reduce pressure on the city” by government forces, al-Halaby said.

Source : http://www.wsj.com/articles/syrian-troops-advance-on-raqqa-as-islamic-state-militants-pressed-on-four-fronts-1465067257