US-led coalition air-drops militants near ISIL-held Raqqah
The US-led coalition has air-dropped ground forces near the northern city of Raqqah in a bid to prepare its forces for an operation to recapture the last key stronghold of the terrorists in the Arab country.
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The Pentagon said in a statement on Wednesday that US military aircraft had airlifted members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militant group near Tabqa,located 40 kilometers from Raqqah, providing air support for them to retakea major dam -- most commonly known as the Euphrates Dam -- that remains in the hands of Daesh extremists.
The SDF, a Kurdish-dominated and anti-Damascus alliance, said US forces had also been deployed with them in the airdrop. It noted that the operation also aims to block any advance by Syrian government forces from the western flank of Raqqah.
A local official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the airdrop took place on Tuesday.
Earlier this month, US Army Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, the commander of the US forces purportedly fighting Daesh, said talks were under way with Turkey on the role Ankara might play in the operation to liberate Raqqah.
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"We are engaged in discussions with the Turks on how they might participate in the liberation of Raqqah and I don't know what the numbers of their participation might be," media outlets quoted the US military official as saying.
Washington currently has about 500 Special Operations troops in Syria. However, their activities have been limited to what the Pentagon describes as training and assisting Kurdish forces in their battle against Daesh and other terrorist groups.
Recently, General Joseph L. Votel, the commander of the US Central Command, said more American troops might be needed in Syria to step up their so-called campaign against Daesh.
Votel also secretly visited northern Syria to meet US-backed militant groups.
Turkey's Hurriyetdaily newspaper reported in early February that Turkish military chief Hulusi Akar had presented his American counterpart, Joseph Dunford, with two plans for a potential operation said to liberate Raqqah.
