While IS continues to fight hard within the center of Manbij using snipers, improvised explosive devices and “civilians as human shields”, he said they are “collapsing back”. “We are hopeful that we will be able to supply them with food and other necessities soon, either from within Syria or from Jordan”, he said.
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A local military council allied to the SDF, which has captured part of Manbij after weeks of fighting, has set Isis fighters a 48-hour deadline beginning Thursday to leave the city.
USA military spokesman Col. Chris Garver said that strikes were conducted Monday near Manbij and the coalition was reviewing the allegations.
Syria’s main opposition group is calling for the U.S.-led coalition to suspend its airstrike campaign against ISIS after reports of dozens of civilian deaths close to the Turkish border.
“So how the Syrian government knows who conducted what strike, I question”.
The U.S. has confirmed causing 36 civilian deaths since it began airstrikes on Syria in the summer of 2015, a figure that is strongly contested by outside observers, according to The Guardian.
The statement said Amnesty International has reviewed available information on dozens of suspected coalition airstrikes and found that in the majority of cases in which civilian casualties have been credibly reported, the coalition has dismissed the claims.
If a formal investigation is launched, its goal will be to discover whether civilians were accidentally killed and, if so, how the tragedy happened so that troops can prevent a repeat occurrence.
In the wake of the airstrikes on Manbij, the head of the opposition Syrian National Coalition has called for a suspension of the air campaign against ISIS in Syria.
The raids drew worldwide condemnation including from the U.N.’s children agency, UNICEF.
Staffan de Mistura, UN special envoy to Syria, estimated last month that the actual death toll could be as high as 400,000 people.
He listed a series of victories made recently in fighting IS, such as the liberation of the Iraqi cities of Hit, Rutbah, and Fallujah, capturing the strategically important Qayyarah West airfield, surrounding the Syrian city of Manbij, and eliminating key IS leaders and its financial base.
Its president Anas al-Abdah said the US-led coalition was responsible for the “crimes” in Manbij which he said killed at least 125 civilians.
“No matter where they are in Syria or under whose control they live – absolutely nothing justifies attacks on children”, said UNICEF’s Syria representative, Hanaa Singer.
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Syria’s government remains committed to protecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity, continuing the struggle to defeat the scourge of US-led Western and regional-supported terrorism.
