Celebrations have erupted in the strategic Syrian city of Manbij following the rout of Islamic State fighters by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces.
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Defeating the terrorist group in Manbij was important as it essentially blocks a supply route IS has between its heartland of Raqqa and Turkey.
As Islamic State loses significant territory in its self-proclaimed caliphate in Syria and Iraq, the extremist group is likely to morph into a more conventional terrorist organization like al Qaeda, some analysts say.
Then came crowds of men, women and children, returning on foot from the countryside, where they took refuge while fighters from the Syria Democratic Forces fought to liberate the once-tranquil city.
But the job of clearing the city will be hard after the terrorist left behind hundreds of mines and booby traps, he added.
The Arab-Kurdish alliance known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) expelled most of the DAESH militants from Manbij last week, but dozens continued to put up tough resistance.
During their rule, IS jihadists imposed a hardline version of Islam, mandating strict social restrictions on Manbij’s residents. Under the extremists’ reign, women had to wear long black cloaks that covered all but their eyes, while all adult men were forced to grow beards.
“May God destroy them. They slaughtered us… May they not live for a minute”. Backed by US air strikes, the Kurdish Arab Alliance has managed to push away the last ISIS militants away from the city, finally allowing its people to enjoy basic human rights that were denied them for so long. During this assault, they rescued some 2,000 civilians who had been abducted by the jihadists as they were being driven out of Manjib to be used as “human shields”.
Incredible pictures have captured civilians’ joy after rebel fighters liberated the Syrian city of Manbij from Islamic State.
One particularly poignant photo shows a woman burning her niqab, as women could finally walk the streets without having to cover their faces for the first time in more than two-and-a-half years.
“Military operations will continue until these villages are clean”, Haj Mansour said.
Fleeing fighters took around 2,000 civilians hostage Friday, including women and children, to ward off airstrikes as they headed towards the IS-held frontier town of Jarabulus, according to the SDF.
Daesh fighters have released most of the civilians they took with them while retreating from the northern Syrian city of Manbij, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told dpa on Saturday.
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IS has suffered major defeats over the past months in Syria and Iraq, where the military recaptured the cities of Ramadi and Fallujah in the western Anbar province. The US hopes that control over the city will prepare the area for their main goal: Clearing ISIS forces out of the terror organization’s capital – Raqqa.
