Started with protests in Daraa in 2011, the Syrian conflict rapidly turned into a war with a number of foreign powers supporting various militant groups (including al-Qaeda-linked) against the government of Bashar al-Assad. Since then, the country has been a point of instability in the Middle East.
Russia began a military intervention in Syria in 2015 after an official request by the Syrian government for military help against militant groups.This allowed the Syrian government to survive and to regain initiative in a battle against Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda), ISIS and other militant groups.
Looks like the SDF doesn’t have far to go before reaching the river. Their buddies have been moving east along the north bank so both will soon be able to block all ISIS traffic to Tabqa on-land and afloat.
Bill Wilson
7 years ago
The SDF has been busy today. They’ve been duking it out with ISIS on both ends of their bridgehead while taking villages to the north of the oil field. Perhaps they were tipped off that ISIS withdrew fighters from that region to defend Tabqa and now the SDF is rushing in before ISIS can hustle over replacements?
Looks like the SDF doesn’t have far to go before reaching the river. Their buddies have been moving east along the north bank so both will soon be able to block all ISIS traffic to Tabqa on-land and afloat.
The SDF has been busy today. They’ve been duking it out with ISIS on both ends of their bridgehead while taking villages to the north of the oil field. Perhaps they were tipped off that ISIS withdrew fighters from that region to defend Tabqa and now the SDF is rushing in before ISIS can hustle over replacements?