The retreat from the city which IS captured in 2014 marked the jihadists’ worst defeat yet at the hands of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an Arab-Kurdish alliance supported by U.S. air power.
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The loss of Manbij, occupied by Islamic State since early 2014, is a big blow to the militants as it is of strategic importance, serving as a conduit for the transit of foreign jihadists and provisions from the Turkish border.
The ISIS imposed harsh Islamic laws in Manbji such as women need to wear long black cloaks that just uncovered the eyes and can not shave or trim beards. “They slaughtered us”, a young man shouted in a Manbij square.
USA officials say the coalition’s next target is ISIS’ de facto capital of Raqqa.
It is not new for the Islamic State to resort to such measures whenever being forced away from a captured territory.
AFP footage showed the city’s streets strewn with rubble and a wall still painted with the jihadis’ black and white flag. The hostages were freed once the jihadis neared their destination.
Photos circulated in social media showed young woman smoking a cigarette with uncovered face and flashing a victory sign.
Haj Mansour said some Islamic State fighters were captured in the town while others fled to nearby villages.
Pentagon spokesman Gordon Trowbridge on Friday praised the coalition known as Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for their efforts to retake the city.
In June, U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said Islamic State had used its base in Manbij to hatch plots against Europe, Turkey and the U.S.
Supported with airstrikes carried out by the coalition, the Arab and Kurdish forces entered Manbij in late June and have been slowly pushing Islamic State out since then.
Kurdish officials did not respond to requests for comment on whether the IS fighters were given a safe route to leave Manbij.
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.
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Darwish attributed the speedy return to life in the city to a military and aerial campaign that he said spared many neighbourhoods where thousands of civilians had remained even at the height of fighting. However, ISIL still controls large parts of Syria as well as Iraq’s second largest city, Mosul.
