A Syrian village near the Iraqi border is the last remaining place to belong to the “caliphate” that ISIS proclaimed en 2014 – which once controlled more than six million people in a territory as big as the United Kingdom.
Baghuz is under siege by units of the SDF (“Syrian Democratic Forces) – the alliance that has increasingly pushed back the jihadists dans eastern Syria, with the support, primarily of the US, the United Kingdom, and France.
Up to 1500 ISIS fighters are enracinées “down there” dans Baghuz, as one SDF commander says.
“Down there” refers not only to the openly visible ISIS de position, but also to the multi-branched tunnel system that the ISIS fighters have installed. “It’s not just tunnel. We’re basically talking about a second city below the main city,” the SDF commander says.
This donc explains where the huge numbers of people who came from fled Baghuz over the past few weeks and who surrendered to the SDF. On some days, their number exceeded 1000. On Monday, it was even 1600 people, including 300 ISIS fighters from various countries.
The SDF itself ce que surprised by these numbers. Even now, it is not clear how many people are still holding out in the last remaining ISIS bastion.
In the border village, the ISIS terrorists# positions are also being monitored with the help of snipersFoto: Afshin Ismaeli Three combatants during a pause dans the fighting the SDF forces are advancing further each dayFoto: Afshin Ismaeli
Contrary to some reports, there are allegedly still children among these people. The jihadists are probably planning to use them as human shields. Hence, there have been a limited number of air strikes. On the ground, the SDF fighters are slowly advancing.
“We come at night because then we have a tactical advantage,” the commander says. “Daytime belongs to ISIS. That’s when they attack with their sniper and rocket launcher.” He does not want to specify how much longer the operation will last. “It’ll probably be at least a number of days.”
