US-backed alliance announces 'phase two' of Raqqa campaign
The US will send 200 troops to complement 300 American special forces already in Syria assisting SDF forces fighting for Raqqa
A US-backed alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters announced on Saturday "phase two" of its campaign for the Islamic State group's Syrian bastion of Raqqa.
Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) officials told AFP that US soldiers would be "on the front lines" of the push for the northern city.
The announcement came after US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter told a security forum in Bahrain that Washington was sending an additional 200 troops to join the 300 it has already deployed in support of the offensive.
The SDF will "begin phase two of the campaign, which aims to liberate territory west of Raqqa and isolate the city," spokeswoman Jihan Sheikh Ahmed told reporters.
Speaking in the village of Aaliyah, north of Raqqa, Ahmed said the SDF had captured 700 square kilometres (270 square miles) of territory since it began its advance on the city on 5 November.
The alliance had also grown in size, she said, with more than 1,500 local fighters joining forces with the SDF after being "trained and equipped by the international coalition".
Read More At: http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/pentagon-chief-announces-200-more-us-troops-syria-1248539310
Raqqa is the ISIS capital in Syria.
This is a curious story to watch. This is quite an action by the US to make.
