BAGHOUZ, Syria — A U.S.-backed force is closing in on Islamic State militants in a tiny area less than a square mile in eastern Syria, and will soon declare the defeat of the militant group, a commander with the group said Saturday.

The capture of the last pocket still held by IS fighters in the village of Baghouz would mark the end of a devastating four-year global campaign to end the extremist group’s hold on territory in Syria and Iraq – the so-called “caliphate” that at the height of the group’s power in 2014 controlled nearly a third of both Iraq and Syria.

“We will very soon bring good news to the whole world,” said Ciya Furat, a commander with the Kurdish-led force known as the Syrian Democratic Forces, speaking at a news conference at the al-Omar Oil Field Base in the Deir el-Zour province.

“We have a lot of great announcements having to do with Syria and our success with the eradication of the caliphate and that will be announced over the next 24 hours,” President Trump told journalists at the White House on Friday.

The Syrian Democratic Forces declared the final push to capture the village a week ago after more than 20,000 civilians, many of them the wives and families of foreign fighters, were evacuated.

Since then, SDF commanders say they have been surprised to discover that there were hundreds more civilians in the enclave, after they were brought up by the militants from underground tunnels. Their presence has slowed the SDF advance.

Advertisement

Furat, the SDF commander, said IS fighters are now besieged in an area that is about 840 square yards. He said that SDF fighters were able to liberate 10 of their colleagues that were held by IS.

Furat’s comments were carried by Kurdish news agencies, including Hawar News.

“We are dealing with this small pocket with patience and caution. It is militarily fallen but civilians are used as human shields,” SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali said. Bali added that the SDF believes that IS gunmen are also holding previously kidnapped Syrians in the area.

Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said SDF fighters are almost in full control of the area once controlled by extremists, adding that there might still be IS fighters hiding in a network of underground tunnels.

The Observatory said that some 200 IS gunmen surrendered Friday, days after about 240 others surrendered to the coalition.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.