US-backed forces evacuated over 40 truckloads of people from the Islamic State group’s last Syria redoubt on Monday, as they sought to clear out civilians before a final push to crush the jihadists.
The Syrian Democratic Forces has slowed down its offensive on the final pocket due to the presence of civilians, with just a scrap of the IS “caliphate” remaining from a territory that once spanned Syria and Iraq.
An AFP correspondent saw at least 46 trucks crammed with men, women and children approaching an SDF outpost, 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of the jihadist bastion.
This picture taken on February 22, 2019 shows a convoy of trucks transporting people who fled the Islamic State (IS) group’s last holdout of Baghouz in Syria’s northern Deir Ezzor province. (Bulent KILIC / AFP)
One vehicle was packed with women clad in black and men who covered their faces. Wounded people were also among the latest evacuees.
Holdout IS fighters and civilians, mostly relatives of jihadists, are trapped inside less than half a square kilometer in the village of Baghouz near the Iraqi border.
— AFP
Your next read: ToI Editors' Picks
LIMITED TIME OFFER: Join The Times of Israel Community today and you'll receive a physical book of your choice, carefully curated by our editors.
Choose between two must-reads: When We See You Again by Rachel Goldberg-Polin, a searing portrait of a mother’s grief and strength following unthinkable tragedy;
Or Out of the Sky: Heroism and Rebirth in Nazi Europe by Matti Friedman, the gripping and surprising tale of a forgotten moment during World War II.
As a Community member, you’ll also enjoy our DocuNation series of outstanding Israeli documentary films, an ad-free experience of our site and podcasts, commenting privileges, and more.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
From the Liveblog of
Monday, February 25, 2019
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
