Islamic State Faces Defeat in Raqqa, Syria

The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces worked Tuesday to seize control of the last remaining areas of Raqqa, Syria from Islamic State militants.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the SDF, made up of Kurdish and Arab militias, stormed and cleared a stadium that had been the last militant base. That followed the capture of a hospital that also served as an Islamic State command center.

Whether the city was completely under SDF control was not clear, with several sources quoting SDF spokesmen giving conflicting information.

The offensive to oust the militants from Raqqa began in June, and was backed by airstrikes and other support from a U.S.-led coalition.

Coalition spokesman Col. Ryan Dillon said on Twitter that Raqqa was 90 percent under SDF control.

Raqqa was Islamic State's de facto capital, a place where it planned attacks abroad, celebrated its victories in Iraq and Syria and performed executions.

Islamic State still controls areas around Deir el-Zour and further south in the Euphrates river valley.

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