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Battle of Raqqa (2017)
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Battle of Raqqa (2017)
The battle of Raqqa (2017), also known as the second battle of Raqqa, was the fifth and final phase of the Raqqa campaign (2016–2017) launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against the Islamic State (IS) with an aim to seize the city of Raqqa, the de facto capital of ISIL since 2014. The battle began on 6 June 2017, and was supported by airstrikes and ground troops from the US-led coalition. The operation was named the "Great Battle" by the SDF. It concluded on 17 October 2017, with the SDF fully capturing the city of Raqqa.
The battle ran concurrently with the conclusion of the Battle of Mosul (2016–2017), which had started seven months earlier, as part of an effort by the CJTF–OIR and its allies to strip ISIL of its regional centers of power and to dismantle it as a state. It continued while Syrian Arab Army and allies began clearing ISIL across the Euphrates, reaching the point of the lifting of the Siege of Deir ez-Zor (2014–2017).
Like other battles fought against ISIL, the battle for Raqqa was marked by intense urban combat, with fighting both on the surface level, and in tunnels below that ISIL militants moved through. One U.S. commander described it as some of the most intense urban fighting since the Second World War. Out of a pre-war population of 300,000 some 270,000 people were said to have fled Raqqa. Around 80% of the city was destroyed by the battle.
In 2015, ISIL began to fortify the city and its surrounding areas with bunkers and a network of tunnels.
By June 2017, Raqqa remained the only major Syrian city fully under ISIL control and was, therefore, its effective center of operations. With its large number of foreign fighters, Raqqa was a planning center for terrorist attacks against European cities. The Raqqa campaign was launched by the SDF on 6 November 2016 in an effort to capture the city, and it had resulted in the SDF capturing a large amount of territory in the Raqqa Governorate from ISIL, including the city of al-Thawrah, and the infrastructure at Tabqa Dam and Baath Dam.
As many as 500 US special forces operated on the ground in northern Syria in support of the Raqqa campaign. The US and other coalition members supplied heavy weapons, intelligence collection, communications support and other assistance to the SDF as part of their intervention in the conflict. The battle began in the wake of a tumultuous period for the coalition, as internal pressures had been elevated by the Qatar diplomatic crisis, which had seen diplomatic relations between Qatar and other coalition members severed, and was publicly supported by President Donald Trump.
Local residents stated that many ISIL militants had already abandoned the city and traveled to Deir ez-Zor in anticipation of the impending attack on their capital. ISIL assaulted the regime's enclave in Deir ez-Zor, which at the time was split between ISIL and the Syrian government, launching a series of strong attacks against the Syrian Army from June to August.
It was reported by AFP that in a US airstrike, 21 civilians were killed while attempting to flee Raqqa by dinghy on the Euphrates River. The event was also reported by Al Jazeera, but with uncertainty as to who carried out the bombing.
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Battle of Raqqa (2017)
The battle of Raqqa (2017), also known as the second battle of Raqqa, was the fifth and final phase of the Raqqa campaign (2016–2017) launched by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against the Islamic State (IS) with an aim to seize the city of Raqqa, the de facto capital of ISIL since 2014. The battle began on 6 June 2017, and was supported by airstrikes and ground troops from the US-led coalition. The operation was named the "Great Battle" by the SDF. It concluded on 17 October 2017, with the SDF fully capturing the city of Raqqa.
The battle ran concurrently with the conclusion of the Battle of Mosul (2016–2017), which had started seven months earlier, as part of an effort by the CJTF–OIR and its allies to strip ISIL of its regional centers of power and to dismantle it as a state. It continued while Syrian Arab Army and allies began clearing ISIL across the Euphrates, reaching the point of the lifting of the Siege of Deir ez-Zor (2014–2017).
Like other battles fought against ISIL, the battle for Raqqa was marked by intense urban combat, with fighting both on the surface level, and in tunnels below that ISIL militants moved through. One U.S. commander described it as some of the most intense urban fighting since the Second World War. Out of a pre-war population of 300,000 some 270,000 people were said to have fled Raqqa. Around 80% of the city was destroyed by the battle.
In 2015, ISIL began to fortify the city and its surrounding areas with bunkers and a network of tunnels.
By June 2017, Raqqa remained the only major Syrian city fully under ISIL control and was, therefore, its effective center of operations. With its large number of foreign fighters, Raqqa was a planning center for terrorist attacks against European cities. The Raqqa campaign was launched by the SDF on 6 November 2016 in an effort to capture the city, and it had resulted in the SDF capturing a large amount of territory in the Raqqa Governorate from ISIL, including the city of al-Thawrah, and the infrastructure at Tabqa Dam and Baath Dam.
As many as 500 US special forces operated on the ground in northern Syria in support of the Raqqa campaign. The US and other coalition members supplied heavy weapons, intelligence collection, communications support and other assistance to the SDF as part of their intervention in the conflict. The battle began in the wake of a tumultuous period for the coalition, as internal pressures had been elevated by the Qatar diplomatic crisis, which had seen diplomatic relations between Qatar and other coalition members severed, and was publicly supported by President Donald Trump.
Local residents stated that many ISIL militants had already abandoned the city and traveled to Deir ez-Zor in anticipation of the impending attack on their capital. ISIL assaulted the regime's enclave in Deir ez-Zor, which at the time was split between ISIL and the Syrian government, launching a series of strong attacks against the Syrian Army from June to August.
It was reported by AFP that in a US airstrike, 21 civilians were killed while attempting to flee Raqqa by dinghy on the Euphrates River. The event was also reported by Al Jazeera, but with uncertainty as to who carried out the bombing.
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