The so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed up by the US-led coalition’s artillery units, warplanes and military advisors, have been developing an advance against ISIS terrorists in the southwestern countryside of Raqqah.
Recently, the SDF recaptured the village of Abbad from ISIS. The village is located east of the ISIS-held town of Tabqa and does not have a strategic value. However, this move shows that the SDF could choose to avoid storming Tabqa in the next days. In turn, the US-backed force will develop the advance in the direction of the crossroad town of al-Mansurah.
Tabqa and the Tabqa dam are important ISIS defense sites in the western countryside of Raqqah. However, while they are isolated, the terrorist group cannot use them actively to influence the SDF advance south of the ISIS self-proclaimed capital.
Click to see the full-size map
It’s time for SAA to attack from Ithrya and form North.
I disagree, after the capture and securing of Jirah Airbase, SAA’s focus will have to be switched to areas like Hama, Aleppo City western outskirts and of course Deir Ezzor. After the capture of Jirah there are no more ISIS-held points of value in the area for SAA at the time… Getting close to Tabqa while it’s held by SDF is of no value compared to other fronts…
the turks/americans will never give the kurds their own state, so theirs no reason for syria to try and race for territory with SDF, the more ground the SDF gain the more annoyed turkey will get with america, in the end anywhere the kurds secure will come under control of syrian state anyway .
the one thing the turks want less then syria controlling that territory is the kurds controlling it
Well, Your words make me smile. SAA race. I know its difficult to see into the future, but none in the world will ever accept assads as dictator owners of all Syria.
So I dont see Your conclusions. The Rojava possesition today silently are getting its own strúcture with improvements here and there. They will never accept Turks comming there and the support of arabs there are growing. Those arabs has kind of respect for kurds now and Im sure many kurds has learned, that arabs are not as bad as they thought and the badest of them has to be kept out.
So I would say it soon is not a question around kurds anymore, but the country or parts of it should be one or 2 provinces, where only a few high buildings will have Syrian 2 star flag.
That or those northern and eastern provinces will be or can be better than Iraqi kurdistan but with mixed population and sekular local governes.
Well, thats my hope. And I see Turks as very instabile as it is today.
It will become us sphere of influence autonomy zone basically.
Thats an army view.
It would be of big propaganda value, that many refugees could come back and Syria again could feed itself. I know Assad lake isnt Stalingrad, but nice Assads had at least half of its borderlines.
And well, Im still not impressed by the SAA, but it seems to be a possible task to take down to close to Tabqa and its also to be seen on a map.
I can only see its a minus to have 8-10 mio refugees and mainly non productive minus taxpayers.
Its not obstruction, but the uprise is also a political matter.
It would be a waste of manpower.
you sure SAA is focusing more on northern western aleppo. And you think they don’t want masskhak?
I dont understand, every non damaged brain knows ISIS = uSSa+ISISrael+Saudis+Quatar…..
The socalled Russians and socalled SAA have been rather ineffectual and the socalled Asad is a mass murderer. Luckily the SDF will liberate Raqqah, to prevent so called Iranians taking that city.