Syrian Army enters Raqqa Province in anti-Islamic State offensive

Heavy Russian air strikes hit IS-held territory in eastern areas of Syria’s Hama province

June 04, 2016 03:09 pm | Updated November 17, 2021 01:45 am IST - AMMAN:

Fighters of the Syria Democratic Forces prepare to fire a mortar shell towards positions held by Islamic State fighters in northern province of Raqqa in this May 27, 2016 file photo. The Syrian army has crossed the boundary of Raqqa province after advancing in a major Russian-backed offensive against IS militants, a monitoring group said on Saturday.

Fighters of the Syria Democratic Forces prepare to fire a mortar shell towards positions held by Islamic State fighters in northern province of Raqqa in this May 27, 2016 file photo. The Syrian army has crossed the boundary of Raqqa province after advancing in a major Russian-backed offensive against IS militants, a monitoring group said on Saturday.

The Syrian army has crossed the boundary of Raqqa province after advancing in a major Russian-backed offensive against Islamic State (IS) militants, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a group that monitors the war, said on Saturday.

Heavy Russian air strikes hit IS-held territory in eastern areas of Syria’s Hama province, near the boundary of Raqqa province, on Friday and the army reached the edge of the province.

Significant setback for IS

Raqqa city, further east, is IS’s de facto capital in Syria and, along with Mosul in Iraq, the ultimate target of those seeking to destroy the group’s self-declared caliphate.

Syrian army spokesmen were not immediately available for comment.

The Syrian army offensive is the third big assault on the self-proclaimed caliphate in recent days after Iraqi forces attempted to storm a city and a Syrian militia advanced with U.S. support.

Among the most aggressive campaigns

The three big offensives are some of the most aggressive campaigns against the IS since it declared its aim to rule over all Muslims from parts of Iraq and Syria two years ago.

Top News Today

Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.