Watching and following politics in this country at the national level is a very difficult proposition these days. If you label yourself an Independent voter it is even more difficult. Media outlets aren’t content to report the news now, those days are going, going gone. We live in the hot take era. Media members now More »
Raqqa
Raqqa’s Dirty Secret, Thousands of ISIS Fighters, Families Allowed to Flee
After months of bloody, hard fighting, the Syrians trying to take back their territory from the Islamic State wanted the fighting to be over. Especially so in the self-styled “caliphate” of Raqqa. The Syrians entered into a deal with ISIS to allow their fighters and families to escape Raqqa. The agreement was supposed to forbid More »
Rebuilding “Hell Square” in Raqqa, Syria A Difficult Task
The battle to liberate Raqqa from the Islamic State by the US-led coalition took months of hard fighting. Now the city is a bombed-out shell of itself. No one knows exactly how many lives were lost. Raqqa is devastated and according to officials, it will take months or even years to make the city habitable More »
Islamic State Fighters Fleeing Raqqa as the Battle Nears the End
U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), have agreed to a proposal with the Islamic State that allows Syrian jihadists to leave the city of Raqqa in exchange for the release of civilians held captive by the ISIS group. A statement released by SDF stated ISIS fighters are fleeing as the SDF has nearly totally captured Raqqa. More »
U.S. Backed SDF Scours ISIS Base in Raqqa For Intelligence
US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces are moving thru the Islamic State’s former bastion at Raqqa as now 90 percent of the city has been taken. Their fighters on Monday were slowly recovering communication equipment and weapons used by the ISIS forces in their former command centers. After battling thru the western edge of the city, the More »
US-Backed Forces in Raqqa, Breach Perimeter in ISIS Stronghold
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) backed by the United States have breached a perimeter wall that surrounds the Old City of Raqqa, as the battle rages around the last stronghold of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria. SDF fighters had penetrated the Rafiqah Wall as the battle intensified. Reports were surfacing of Islamic State fighters trying More »
US Airstrikes Causing “Staggering” Civilian Deaths Says UN
The UN is reporting that the coalition airstrikes led by the US is causing a “staggering” number of civilian deaths in the Syrian city of Raqqa. The city was taken by Islamist State forces in 2014 and has been cited by the IS as their “capital” and their “caliphate”. US-backed SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces) are More »
Syrian SDF Rebels Moving Into Small Neighborhoods of Raqqa
The US-backed Syrian Defense Forces (SDF) are slowly tightening the noose around the Islamic State (IS) enclave of Raqqa. While forward elements are already getting a foothold in the city’s east side, other SDF units are busy securing the areas surrounding the city. There are reports of US Special Operations troops being with the SDF More »
US-backed Syrian Fighters Move Slowly into IS “Capital” of Raqqa
The US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) rebel force against the government of Assad has cautiously entered the final Islamic State stronghold of Raqqa. They entered thru the eastern edge of the city, fording a river on foot and in light vehicles all the while relaying their position by radio in an attempt not to fall More »
Turkey Readies For “Aggression” From US-Backed SDF in Raqqa
The US-backed coalition of Kurds and Arabs of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have begun their long-awaited assault on the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed caliphate in Raqqa. The forecast for the battle has it that it will be long and costly as the IS fighters are cut off from any support. But the government of Turkey More »
