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Syrian Fighters Seize Half of Manbij From Islamic State

The U.S.-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias known as the Syrian Democratic Forces launched the offensive in June.

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The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes appeared to have been carried out in error, with the civilians mistaken for Islamist militants.

Activist groups and witnesses in the area, though, said dozens of civilians were also killed in the coalition strikes.

A statement from the Manbij Military Council said the Islamic State militants would be allowed to leave the city with light weapons, without a fight. If you would like to discuss another topic, look for a relevant article.

SDF progress has been blunted in recent weeks due to various traps and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) planted by ISIS fighters around the city, a common tactic employed by the terrorist group when it loses territory.

A coalition of Syrian opposition groups requested the suspension of U.S.-led airstrikes against the Islamic State terror group in Syria pending an investigation into reports that the campaign killed more than 50 civilians this week.

Colonel Chris Garver, a spokesman for the USA coalition against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, said it was looking into reports of civilian deaths but was being “extraordinarily careful to make sure” air strikes were killing IS fighters. Only after the strike did the U.S.-led coalition receive reports from sources indicating there may have been civilians in the area.

Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said SDF fighters seized a southern district of the town, “bringing them the closest they have been to the centre of Manbij”.

French President Francois Hollande said he had no precise information on whether French planes were responsible for the Toukhar air strike.

Fighting terrorism shouldn’t be used to justify civilian deaths, he added.

The Amnesty International, citing accounts from local activists and documentary evidence said that airstrikes on nearby al-Tukhar village on Monday and Tuesday killed at least 60 people.

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More than 280,000 people have been killed and half the population displaced since the conflict began in March 2011 with anti-government protests. The group states that coalition forces may have “violated worldwide humanitarian law” and that it seeks “clarification” from the U.S. Central Command about other Syria air strike missions.

US-led air strikes kill 21 civilians in Syria