The outskirt of al-Baghuz village, Click to see the full-size image
On May 13, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced that its fighters, supported by the US-led coalition, had cleared more than 21km of the Syrian-Iraqi border and had met with the Iraqi Army around the village of al-Baghuz in the southeastern countryside of Deir Ezzor.
The US-backed force besieged several units of ISIS inside the village of al-Baghuz on May 12 after it had captured many key positions west and northwest of the village.
According to Syrian opposition sources, al-Baghuz is witnessing heavy clashes between SDF fighters and the besieged members of ISIS. The sources also reported that US-led coalition warplanes had carried out several airstrikes on the terrorist group positions inside the village.
The ISIS-linked new agency Amaq didn’t release any report regarding the situation in al-Baghuz village. Usually this means that the ISIS defense is about to collapse.
According to pro-SDF sources, the village is already in the hands of the SDF, but this still has to be confirmed.
Local observers believe that the SDF will soon establish full control of al-Baghuz. After achieving this goal, the US-backed force will likely try to isolate the last stronghold of ISIS in Syria, the town of Hajin, which is located more than 30km north of al-Baghuz.
Click to see the full-size image
