Qayyarah West Airfield, which will be a stepping stone and staging area for Iraqi forces, has been cleared and efforts are underway to develop the area to support upcoming operations to liberate Mosul, Dorrian added.
Partners in Syria
In Syria, after taking Jarabulus with its partnered forces, Turkey has announced that they've cleared the remaining border region from further infiltration by ISIL, Dorrian said.
This terrain was important as an route into and out of the region, he added, noting that ISIL’s loss of freedom of movement in this area improves security in Europe and around the world and severely impacts their ability to reinforce fighters in Syria and Iraq.
“ISIL is an adaptive and determined enemy,” the OIR spokesman said, “and the coalition will continue to support Turkey as our NATO ally, and their partner forces, as they continue to strengthen their lines and secure that border. The coalition will also continue working with our Syrian Democratic Forces partners in Syria to assure the latest progress continues to build momentum for a lasting defeat of [ISIL] in the region.”
The latest progress along with continuous airstrikes to dismantle ISIL command and control, financing and resupply routes set conditions for the eventual liberation of Raqqa, the city that ISIL considers its capital, he added.
Part of setting those conditions is continued work to assure that all counter-ISIL forces operating in Syria have opened their lines of coordination to deconflict operations in what has become a very crowded battle space, Dorrian said. “Unity of focus on [ISIL] over the coming days and weeks is imperative,” he added.
“Our allies, our coalition members and all of our partners have a unifying interest in defeating [ISIL],” Dorrian said. “We believe the improved coordination of armed activities in northern Syria will improve the safety of our forces.”
(Source: US Dept of Defense)
Comments are closed.