Raqqa

Islamic State begins new phase of operations against Syrian regime with two terror attacks

The terrorist group said on its Dabiq news agency that it had targeted “an individual of the apostate Syrian regime” in the city of Mayadin in Deir al-Zor province using a pistol.

|ByREUTERS
A member loyal to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) waves an ISIL flag in Raqqa June 29, 2014.
Soldiers from the Syrian Democratic Forces stand in front of the detainees before the first exchange operation between the Syrian Democratic Forces and the Syrian government in Aleppo, Syria, April 3, 2025.

Syria's government faces pivotal moment against SDF, as it retakes largest oil field - analysis

Overnight on January 17 and 18, there were major changes on the ground as Arab tribal fighters claimed to seize control of a number of villages and two oil fields on the East side of the Euphrates.

|BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
SDF arrests a five-man ISIS terror cell north of Raqqa, November 1, 2025.

Syrian Democratic Forces arrest five ISIS cell members in Raqqa raid

The raid was supported by the US-led coalition against ISIS, who provided air cover and intelligence, leading to the arrest of the terror cell which had planned attacks in northeast Syria.

|ByJAMES GENN
A fighter of Syrian Democratic Forces stands amidst the ruins of buildings near the Clock Square in Raqqa, Syria October 18, 2017.

Russians near Raqqa two years after US helped take city from ISIS

US policy in Syria was once about defeating ISIS and stabilizing the area. But unlike Russia or Iran, the US didn’t believe that it needed to be loyal to its partners on the ground.

|BySETH J. FRANTZMAN

Trump: Raqqa fall 'critical breakthrough,' end of Islamic State in sight

"With the liberation of ISIS’s capital and the vast majority of its territory, the end of the ISIS caliphate is in sight," US President Donald Trump has announced.

OCTOBER 22, 2017ByREUTERS
A MEMBER of ISIS waves the group’s flag in Raqqa

France's Macron: Raqqa's fall isn't end of battle against Islamic State

France has supplied weapons to the SDF, has special forces operating in the region and has been one of core countries bombing militants as part of the US-led coalition.

OCTOBER 20, 2017ByREUTERS
French President Emmanuel Macron.

Raqqa has fallen. What's next for Syria?

Kurdish fighters and their allies celebrate in Raqqa as the US-led coalition’s allies defeat ISIS and wonder what comes next in eastern Syria.

OCTOBER 18, 2017BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces ride atop an armoured vehicle after Raqqa was liberated from the Islamic State militants, in Raqqa, Syria

ISIS cleared from Syria's Raqqa

The fall of Raqqa city, where ISIS staged euphoric parades after its string of lightning victories in 2014, is a potent symbol of the jihadist movement's collapsing fortunes.

OCTOBER 17, 2017ByREUTERS
Fighters of Syrian Democratic Forces gesture the "V" sign at the frontline in Raqqa, Syria October 16, 2017.

US-backed forces begin final assault on ISIS 'terror capital' in Syria

Hundreds of jihadist fighters and their families flee the city. Syrian militia estimates only 300 remain in the city.

OCTOBER 15, 2017ByREUTERS
Smoke rises near the stadium where the Islamic State militants are holed up after an air strike by coalition forces at the frontline, in Raqqa, Syria

Syrian Islamic State fighters evacuate Raqqa city

It is not clear how many militants remain in the city, where Syrian Democratic Forces have hemmed them into a small enclave.

OCTOBER 15, 2017ByREUTERS
Houses destroyed in Raqqa.

Eighty-five percent of Raqqa liberated from ISIS

US-led coalition forces, Syrian rebels, and the Syrian military have slowly re-taken many of ISIS's strongholds over the last several months.

OCTOBER 14, 2017BySETH J. FRANTZMAN
SYRIAN DEMOCRATIC Forces fighters hold up their weapons north of Raqqa city.

Islamic State 'on the verge' of Raqqa defeat

"Today or tomorrow the city may be liberated," YPG spokesman Nouri Mahmoud said.

OCTOBER 14, 2017ByREUTERS
A view of buildings destroyed during clashes between Syrian Democratic Forces and Islamic State militants in Raqqa.