Posted on 10/20/2017 10:33:39 AM PDT by Texas Fossil
We congratulate the Syrian people and the Syrian Democratic Forces, including the Syrian Arab Coalition, on the liberation of Raqqa. The United States is proud to lead the 73-member Global Coalition that supported this effort, which has seen ISIS’s so-called caliphate crumble across Iraq and Syria. Our work is far from over but the liberation of Raqqa is a critical milestone in the global fight against ISIS, and underscores the success of the ongoing international and Syrian effort to defeat these terrorists.
In January, ISIS was actively plotting terrorist attacks against our allies and our homeland in Raqqa. Nine short months later, it is out of ISIS’s control due to critical decisions President Trump made to accelerate the campaign. Over the last seven months, millions of people have been liberated from ISIS’s brutal rule and working with our partners on the ground we are setting the conditions to enable people to return home.
We cannot forget that this accomplishment also came at significant costs. The Syrian Democratic Forces suffered many losses along the way and we join them in mourning the lives lost. We also mourn the U.S. service members, and others from the Coalition, who made the ultimate sacrifice of giving their life to rid the region of ISIS and protect our homeland.
ISIS cruelty and barbarity cannot be overstated. We witnessed ISIS deliberately and consistently using civilians as human shields and leaving behind mines to maim and kill children and other civilians seeking only to return to their homes or schools. The barbaric nature of ISIS’s tactics left many scars and we are supporting stabilization efforts in liberated areas to help these communities heal.
While we continue the fight to ensure ISIS is defeated militarily where it remains in Syria, the U.S. and other Coalition members are making every effort to remove explosives left by ISIS and to get critical humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations. We are also supporting the efforts of the Raqqa Civil Council and other local Syrian actors to re-establish basic security and deliver essential services to stabilize communities, refurbish schools, and help facilitate the safe and voluntary return home of displaced Syrians.
This also marks the beginning of a new phase in the Syrian conflict. As we and our partners push toward the territorial defeat of ISIS, we will continue to seek to de-escalate violence across Syria. Reducing violence in Syria will allow the United States, our allies, and partners to focus even more on advancing UN-led diplomatic efforts, within the framework of UN Security Council Resolution 2254, aimed at reaching a genuine political transition that honors the will of the Syrian people.
ISIS’s loss of Raqqa does not mean our fight against ISIS is over. The Global Coalition will continue to draw on all elements of national power – military, intelligence, diplomacy, economic, law enforcement, and the strength of our communities – until all Syrians have been liberated from ISIS brutality and we can ensure that it can no longer export its terror around the world. The Coalition will continue its relentless campaign to deny ISIS safe haven anywhere in the world, and sever its ability to recruit, move foreign terrorist fighters, transfer funds, and spread false propaganda over the internet and social media. We are confident that we will prevail and defeat this brutal terrorist organization.
May this day be long remembered.
The Syrians should have stayed and fought ISIS on day 1
Now turn it over to the legally elected, UN recognized and legitimate government of Syria...
Oh, we won’t do that?
Expect a generation of conflict then...
Would anyone have suspected that the Syrians would have ever imagined they would “owe” the USA?
What T-Rex is really saying is, we bombed the out of ISIS. New Sherriff in town. I can see where one might get tired of winning, but not happening. MAGA!
God bless Texas... and her son, Rex Tillerson.
“What T-Rex is really saying is, we bombed the out of ISIS.”
Not really. The heavy fighting in Raqqa was done street by street, by some world class commandos from the Gulf Cooperation Council. The same bunch who wiped out ISIS in Mosul. They work in very effective combined arms squads.
The defeat of obama and mccain’s army is at hand.
Yes
Yes, Indeed.
God Bless Texas
Naahhh
Were you there on day 1?
I’ve been watching this since Kobani.
The Syrian Kurds fought for their life from the beginning.
The Syrian SAA was not capable of fighting ISIS and al Qaeda and the rest of the Jihadi’s.
Your criticism shows how little you know about the wars in Syria.
Where do you get your information? We had US Special Ops in Raqqa for a long time.
I believe you are confusing the forces that the US supported under Obama. The unicorn armies of Jihadi’s.
I’ve not seen or heard anything about the “Gulf Cooperation Council” in Raqqa and I do not believe they did what you said there.
I have friends on the ground in Syria who are well versed on who was involved in all the Syrian Operations since Kobani. I’ve watched closely since Sep/Oct in 2014.
Terrific!
Now, what to do about islam here in the US, which is laying groundwork for a new mosque somewhere, everyday it seems.
Watch them. They are not all alike.
Past that, I’m not sure how to contain the crazies.
Until sharia comes to the fore.
Destroy islam.
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