DEIR EZZOR, Syria, March 4, (Agencies): Scores of Islamic State fighters surrendered to US-backed forces on Monday, a war monitor said, after a ferocious assault to overrun their last shred of territory in eastern Syria. Islamic State faces defeat in Baghouz, the only remaining patch of land it still holds in the area straddling Iraq and Syria where it declared a caliphate in 2014, although it still has control in a few remote areas. Early on Monday, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said they had slowed their assault on Islamic State because more civilians were trapped in the area, though it vowed to capture it soon.
A convoy of trucks was visible heading into Baghouz in the morning, and the Britain - based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 150 jihadists left the enclave, along with about 250 other people. There was no immediate confirmation of the surrenders from the SDF or any indication as to how many jihadists remained holed up inside. Islamic State’s fighters have gradually fallen back on Baghouz at the Iraqi border as they retreated down the Euphrates in the face of sustained assault in both countries after its grotesque displays of cruelty roused global fury. Despite the setbacks, the group remains a deadly threat, developing alternatives to its caliphate ranging from rural insurgency to urban bombings by affiliates in the region and beyond, many governments say.
Source: Arab Times Online – 5 March 2019 👉 https://bit.ly/2EB7bsF
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