SULAYMANIYAH (Sputnik) — The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance has continued its operation to liberate the eastern Syrian city of Raqqa from Daesh militants, advancing 10 kilometers (6 miles) to the north of the city, Kurdish media said Wednesday.
"Yesterday, on the seventh day of the liberation operation, the Syrian Democratic Forces 4th detachment was able to liberate an area 10 kilometers long near the Tishrin Dam in Kobani Canton," the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan media center (PUKmedia) said.
Last week the SDF announced it had launched an offensive against Daesh to free Raqqa, the de facto capital of the terrorist group. On Tuesday, the People's Defense Units (YPG) said the SDF had liberated 12 villages from Daesh during its offensive against the town of Tabqah.
In the latest advance, the SDF recaptured 13 settlements, killed a large number of militants and seized significant arms and ammunition caches, according to PUKmedia.
Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with government forces fighting numerous opposition factions and extremist groups, such as Daesh.
Raqqa has been controlled by Daesh, a terrorist group which has been condemned by the United States, Russia and many other countries, since 2013.