Islamic State fighters Escape Raqqa and Airstrikes Hit “De-Escalation Zone”

Hundreds of Islamic State fighters escaped Raqqa through a deal made with U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) according to a report by the BBC. It is estimated that there were about 250 Islamic State members and 3,500 of their families which fled from Raqqa under the deal.

The Islamic State members were thought to have been transported in mid-October near the 12^th  before the city was “liberated” on October 17th.  The convoy of Islamic state fighters consisted of 50 trucks, 13 buses, and more than 100 of the Islamic States’ own vehicles.

Raqqa was the first large city captured by the Islamic State in 2014 and was used for planning operations for warfare in the Middle East and several attacks overseas.

The jihadists were picked up in Raqqa and traveled through the desert where their exact route is unknown, finally making their way into Islamic State’s controlled territory in between the towns of al-Suwar and Markadah.

The United States knowingly allowed the deal to occur and kept a close watch on the convoy as it drove through the desert toward the Iraqi border, but a U.S. spokesman said the decision to permit the deal was made by coalition partners.

Large numbers are the terrorists were foreign fighters coming from France, Turkey, Pakistan, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, and Egypt. The location of the terrorist is currently unknown as they travel throughout Syria, the Middle East, and back to their home counties.

As the fight against the Islamic State continues, the civil war also persists in Syria.  On the 13^th of November there was an airstrike on the Atareb market  in northern Syria which reportedly killed at least 61 civilians and injured at least 90 individuals. It was not clear whether the air strike was carried out by the Syrian government or its Russian ally.  The market was hit by three different strikes.

It is unclear who the direct target of the attack was intended to be, however, the area which was attacked is largely held by opposition forces as well as remnants of the Islamic State.

The town is located in the area of the Aleppo province which is supposed to be considered a part of a  “de-escalation zone” that was established two weeks earlier before the airstrike by Russia, Iran and Turkey. The plans were announced to implement no fly zones over four de-escalation zones. The four de-escalation zones include the provinces of Idlib, Homs, Latakia, Aleppo and Hama, and in these areas the government forces would halt air raids and fighting for 6 months.

There is reportedly 2.5 million people living in these four zones. The zones are credited with a drop-in violence, but clashes still persist.

Additionally, as the United States and Russia remain holding influence over both sides the Syrian fight, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggested that Russia and the United States should pull their troops out of Syria. Both President Trump and Vladimir Putin said there was “no military solution” to the countries long running conflict, the Turkish president stated that they should then take steps for a political solution instead.

Although the United States wants to halt military action as well as end the violence inflicted toward the Syrian people, they also need to prevent the spread of Islamic State fighters fleeing the area. At the same time, it is concerning that the U.S. allowed for the SDF to craft the deal to allow for Islamic State to withdrawal, making it harder for the U.S. to track the estimated 4,000 individuals still at large. As the fight against the Islamic State nears the end, mistakes like these will prove detrimental for the U.S. end goal of containing the spread of terrorist violence.