A report by a correspondent for The Media Line from the areas of eastern Syria — where an alliance of Kurdish and Arab (SDF) fighters continues to battle the Islamic State — reaffirms the predominant assessment by those in the region that President Trump’s belief that ISIS has been defeated is naïve at best, wrong regardless. Rather, fighting continues in Deir-ez-Zor province where hundreds of ISIS gunmen continue to operate according to Havel Ronnie, a top commander of the SDF forces. Ronnie told The Media Line that the Islamic State’s forces are the best the jihadists have after having been battle-hardened in numerous intense campaigns. Rather than packing up and going home as President Trump has suggested, they have dug tunnels and protected them with improvised explosive devices. Even victory comes at a price as SDF spokesman Marwan Qamishli reminded us. The operation to liberate Hajin was technically a “success,” but it came at a high cost in men and arms. Even now, skirmishes continue and around Hajin a great deal of territory remains under ISIS control. Echoing the reality critics of the recent Trump announcement continue to cite, Qamishli reminded The Media Line that “you have to remember ISIS is not like other groups – it is an ideology – it is Islamic fascism – and that cannot be defeated on the battlefield alone.”
See the article from the front at: https://themedialine.org/news/isis-lethality-intact-ground-forces-disagree-with-president-trump/ [1]