US-Led Coalition Refuses To Confirm Reports On SDF Entering Syria's Hajin - Spokesman

A spokesman for the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State (IS, outlawed in Russia) terror group declined on Friday to either confirm or deny reports that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have entered the Syrian city of Hajin.

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th December, 2018) A spokesman for the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State (IS, outlawed in Russia) terror group declined on Friday to either confirm or deny reports that the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have entered the Syrian city of Hajin.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights on Thursday said SDF forces have advanced into Hajin and now control about half of the city, which is one of the last remaining strongholds of the IS terror group.

Asked whether the coalition could confirm the reports, Spokesman Col. Sean Ryan declined to answer, telling Sputnik only that "the Syrian Democratic Forces have advanced into more territory once held by ISIS and thwarted their multiple counter offensives."

Ryan said intelligence reports indicate that IS terrorists are trying to leave the middle Euphrates River Valley, but Iraqi security forces are preventing them from fleeing across the border into Iraq.

The SDF has created corridors of escape for non-combatants in the area, allowing more than 1,000 to flee recently, Ryan said, adding that IS is using civilians as human shields.

Ryan also said the IS terror group has suffered heavy losses over the past week, as the SDF and coalition airstrikes have destroyed more than 50 vehicles, 36 supply routes, nine fighting positions, four command and control centers, vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices and IED facilities .

The US-led coalition of more than 70 countries is conducting military operations against the Islamic State terror group in Syria and Iraq. The coalition's operations in Syria are not authorized by the government of President Bashar Assad or the United Nations Security Council.