Over 70 Terrorists Reportedly Killed in Militia's Push Against Daesh in Raqqa

Seventy-eight members of the terrorist group Daesh (banned in Russia) were killed in an operation to free the city of Raqqa carried out by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Kurdish media reported on Thursday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to Firat News Agency, SDF fighters also destroyed a workshop where terrorists were preparing vehicles filled with explosives and two such vehicles. An ammunition warehouse and one bomb-laden vehicle were seized.

Five SDF fighters were reportedly killed and four others suffered injuries.

Last week the spokesman for SDF said that the militia had liberated 60 percent of the city's territory from Daesh.

Raqqa has remained under the control of Daesh since 2013. The operation to free the city from Daesh control was launched by the SDF, led by People's Protection Units (YPG), primarily Kurdish forces, in June.

Brett McGurk, US Special Envoy to international anti-Daesh coalition, said that the operation to free Raqqa would conclude faster than the campaign to retake Iraq's Mosul.

The Iraqi forces, backed by the coalition, launched the Mosul offensive in October 2016 and the country's government said in early July that Daesh was defeated in the city.