Sputnik News- The Kurdish-led SDF have been conducting the military campaign to liberate Raqqa from terrorists since November 2016.
"Clashes in Raqqa continue. Claims that the city is completely liberated from Daesh are false," the media representative of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) rebels, Mustafa Balli, has told Sputnik Turkey.
The statement comes amid AFP’s earlier report, citing the SDF, that the US-backed rebels had established control over Raqqa, the so-called former Daesh "capital," while an operation to clear the city of the remaining militants continued.
Earlier media reports cited eyewitnesses as saying that the US-backed rebels had raised a flag inside the Raqqa stadium.
Bel Trew ?@Beltrew
Breaking: SDF spokesman just told me Islamic State are defeated in #Raqqa - clean up operation to remove “sleeper cells” has begun. #Isis
1:53 PM - Oct 17, 2017
The Raqqa victory comes days after the final assault on the city was announced after an evacuation of civilians and Daesh terrorists, who agreed to leave the Syrian city, had been carried out. The evacuation of civilians and 275 Daesh terrorists of Syrian origin was part of an agreement reached by the US-led coalition. After a convoy with evacuees left the former "capital" of Daesh terrorist group, the final battle with remaining 200-300 terrorists mostly from foreign states began.
Conflict News @ConflictsBREAKING: ISIS has been fully cleared from Raqqa by SDF forces - @syriahr
Follow
Conflict News @ConflictsPHOTO: SDF troops take down last remaining ISIS flag in Raqqa. - @DefenseUnitspic.twitter.com/bn8E29aQau
1:43 PM - Oct 17, 2017
Raqqa has been under Daesh's control since 2013. On November 6, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, also consisting of Arab, Assyrian and Turkmen fighters, among others, announced the start of the military operation to liberate the Syrian city of Raqqa from Daesh terrorist group with the assistance of the US-led coalition's airstrikes. Raqqa’s Old City was freed from Daesh last month.