Al-Raqqah city in one year after expelling ISIS of it: unreconstructed ruins, security chaos, and pulled corpses raised to 3650, the death toll of civilians and fighters
The 20th of October 2018, is the day where the operation of controlling al-Raqqah city completes its first year, where it was controlled by the Syria Democratic Forces and the International Coalition Forces after a long military operation, which exhausted the city and caused great destruction in it, this operation lasted about 20 consecutive weeks, after which the Syria Democratic Forces were able to control the entire city, which used to be the main stronghold of the “Islamic State” organization and its capital in Syria, which witnessed several years before being controlled by SDF executions and massacres, part of which was carried out by the dominant Organization, which relied on the intimidation of citizens to control them and to encourage them to join its ranks, and at other times it exploited their needs and tragedies to join its ranks, while the other part was carried out by the regime forces, who killed the people through their occasional aerial bombardments, in addition to Coalition killings before controlling the city, and the attack to control the city was followed by killing its residents and those who could not escape.
Al-Raqqah city was inhabited by a population of approximately 350000 civilians just before the start of the control operation by the International Coalition, on the 6th of June 2018, and during the period of controlling the city it turned to a city almost free of its inhabitants, whose fate was different from each other’s, where some of them were killed, some were injured, and some of them are still missing, including those whose body remains under the ruins of destruction, and some of them chose to flee their city to another Syrian areas, fleeing the death that prevailed the city, turning the city into something like a mass of destruction free of souls, of which no party missed an opportunity to kill their past, present, and to finish their future, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitored extreme devastation within al-Raqqah, where the rate of destruction and uninhabitable buildings reached about 80% of the city’s area, which in previous years was the main stronghold of the “Islamic State” organization in Syria and a center for the command of operations in Syria, and despite the end of the first year of control, this destruction is still as it is, and only minor parts of the city have been reconstructed, while the city remains destroyed showing one of the most notorious battles, destruction, and killings that took place in the Syrian arena and in the battles against the “Islamic State” Organization.
Also the city suffers from the security chaos through members of the “Islamic State” Organization, who aim to maintain the moral presence of the “Islamic State” organization, and these operations took the form of booby-trapped detonations, IEDs detonations, and the attacks were accompanied by clashes in al-Raqqah city and other areas on the outskirts of the city and its surroundings, while the security operations of Syria Democratic Forces and their internal security forces were accompanied by arrests of civilians and members accused of belonging to the sleeper cells, and members of brigades working alongside the Syria Democratic Forces on various charges, which angered residents of al-Raqqah city of whom tens of thousands are still outside of al-Raqqah city and in the displacement camps, as a result of the slowdown in the reconstruction of the city which was destroyed by the military operations.
Also the city suffers from the operations of the members of the “Islamic State” of the Organization, which aims to maintain the moral presence the “Islamic State” organization, which consisted of detonating bombs, detonating explosive devices and attacks accompanied by clashes Witnessed by al-Raqqah city and other areas in outskirts the city and its surroundings, accompanied by security operations of the Sorya and its internal security forces, were arrests of civilians and members accused of belonging to sleeper cells, members of brigades working alongside the Syria Democratic Forces on various counts, which angered the residents of al-Raqqah city, who still have tens of thousands of them outside al-Raqqah city and in displacement camps as a result of the slowdown in the reconstruction of the city destroyed by military operations.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also monitored in 2017, that the clash in al-Raqqah city have ceased since the 21st of September 2017, followed by a massive sweep of the city, followed by evacuating the Syrian and foreign members of the “Islamic State” Organization out of the city, which was reached after long negotiations between the Organization and the International Coalition, ended by ISIS handing over hundreds of foreign members for themselves and transporting the Syrian members of the organization with their families outside the city, and by which the “Islamic State” Organization lost its full presence in al-Raqqah province, after being expelled during the weeks and months before controlling al-Raqqah city by the regime forces and the militiamen loyal to them, from the western, southwestern, eastern, and southeastern countryside of al-Raqqah, in addition to ending the presence of the Organization completely in the entire north of Euphrates River by the Syria Democratic Forces supported by the International Coalition, and from area al-Tabaqa on the southern banks of the river until al-Ekirshi area east of al-Raqqah.
Hundreds of bodies were found under the rubbles in al-Raqqah city, of who were killed by the intense shelling by the International Coalition and bombing by “Euphrates Wrath” Operation Forces, and explosions of the booby-trapped vehicles and the detonation of mines that were heavily planted in the city by the Organization, and the military operations that the city witnessed, some of the casualties were previously documented while others were missing, all of this have caused the death toll of civilian casualties to increase, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented the death of 1280 citizens including an activist in the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, 289 children and 223 citizen women since the 5th of June 2017 until the 20th of October 2018, by airstrikes by International Coalition, which also destroyed houses and facilities in Al-Raqqah city, its vicinity, and countryside.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also documented that the international coalition airstrikes and the heavy bombardment on al-Raqqa city and its outskirts along with the military offensives in the city that included shelling, bombings and clashes with the “Euphrates Wrath” Operations Forces, which is composed of the Syria Democratic Forces, the Syrian Elite Forces, and the US Special Forces backed by the International Coalition’s warplanes caused – since the launching of the battle until today the 6th of September 2017 until today the 21st of September 2017– the death of at least 1400 members of the “Islamic State” organization including local figures and commanders of groups, amid confirmed information about death of other members, in addition to injuring tens of them with varying degrees of severity, the fate of some of them was revealed recently after being lost.
Also, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented in the same period the death of 690 fighters of the “Euphrates Wrath” including 2 fighters from the Syrian Elites Forces, a Syriac Security Force fighter, 5 fighters of American, Georgian, British and Turkish nationalities, while the rest of them are from the Syria Democratic Forces, whose main pillar is the YPG, and fighters of Manbij Military Council, who were killed during clashes against the “Islamic State” organization and due to bombings in al-Raqqa city and the southern banks of Euphrates River and mine explosions.
Also the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights documented the death of at least 260 civilians including 56 children and 31 citizen women in mine explosions while they were trying to get out of areas controlled by the “Islamic State” organization in Al-Raqqah city, to areas controlled by the SDF since the 5th of June 2017 until the 20th of October 2018, in addition to the injury of tens of other civilians, with varying degrees of severity and permanent disability.