16 November 2016, 16:11 GMT
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The initial part of the operation to retake the Syrian city of Raqqa from the Daesh is expected to last for weeks, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. John Dorrian said on Wednesday.
"We do expect this isolation phase to go on for a number of weeks, perhaps months," Dorrian told reporters.
On November 6, the Syrian Democratic Forces announced the launch of the operation Wrath of Euphrates to retake Raqqa from the entrenched Daesh militants.
According to Brett McGurk, White House envoy to the coalition, the Raqqa offensive will proceed in deliberate phases beginning with the isolation phase.
Raqqa has been under Islamic State control since 2013 and serves as the group's de facto capital in Syria.
