Turkish-backed FSA recaptures al-Bab from Daesh
The Free Syrian Army says it has taken full control of al-Bab, pushing back Daesh militants to the nearby town of Tadif.
FSA fighters on the outskirts of al-Bab in northern Syria on February 4, 2017.
Free Syrian Army (FSA) forces backed by the Turkish military on Thursday retook the northern Syrian town of al-Bab from Daesh.
"We are announcing al-Bab completely liberated, and we are now clearing mines from residential neighbourhoods," said Ahmad Othman, commander of the Sultan Mourad rebel group, part of the FSA.
Al-Bab is a strategic town on a supply route from Daesh's de facto capital in Syria, Raqqa. Its loss is a blow for the terrorist organisation.
#BREAKING || #EuphratesShield
— FSA News (@FSAPlatform) February 23, 2017
Free Syrian Army forces take total control of #AlBab from #Daesh after bitter battles that killed 37+ Daesh pic.twitter.com/aeljYJI9JJ
Turkey and its allies now plan to press on towards Raqqa.
The Turkish army said on Thursday it had killed at least 58 Daesh militants in and around al-Bab during the latest operations in the area.
Turkey in August 2016 launched Operation Euphrates Shield with Turkish-backed opposition forces to secure Turkey's border with Syria.
The operation aims to drive Daesh and the armed wing of the PYD - considered the Syrian affiliate of the PKK, which Turkey, the US and the EU list as a terrorist organisation - out of the region.
TRT World's Abubakr Al Shamahi in Gaziantep, on Turkey's border with Syria, has more.
Copyright © 2024 TRT World.