Raqa liberation nears
A convoy will leave Syria's Raqa yesterday under an evacuation deal agreed as a US-backed force battles to seize the Islamic State group's last positions in the city.
The US-led coalition said the deal for the evacuation would exclude foreign IS fighters, but left unclear whether Syrian jihadists would be able to quit their one-time stronghold.
The agreement, reached by local officials, comes after days of talks on a way for the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces to secure the last parts of the city while avoiding further civilian casualties.
Earlier yesterday, the US-led coalition said around 100 IS fighters had surrendered to the SDF in the past 24 hours, but again stressed that no foreign fighters would be allowed to escape the city.
In neighbouring Deir Ezzor province meanwhile, Syria's army captured the IS stronghold of Mayadeen, in the latest blow to the jihadists who are seeing their self-styled "caliphate" crumble.
Raqa was once the de facto Syrian capital of the jihadist group's "caliphate" and the city's loss would be a new blow for IS, which has already been driven from its strongholds in Iraq including second city Mosul.
In June, the US-backed SDF, an alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters, broke into Raqa, and since then they have captured around 90 percent of the city.
In recent days, talks had been under way on a deal to secure the last parts of Raqa while protecting trapped civilians, some of them being used by IS fighters as human shields.
Up to 1,500 civilians have managed to flee the battle-ravaged city in the past week, according to the coalition. The United Nations estimates thousands more may still be trapped inside.
IS captured Raqa in 2014, turning it into a byword for its outrageous abuses as well as a centre for the planning of attacks abroad.
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