US-backed Syrian rebel group says assault on Islamic State imminent
A Syrian rebel group which is part of a new US-backed alliance that also includes the Kurdish YPG militia announced on Thursday plans for an imminent offensive against Islamic State militants in Raqqa province, the jihadists' stronghold in Syria.
US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said earlier this week the US-led coalition would support local forces as they put pressure on Islamic State in Raqqa and in neighbouring Iraq.
"We will soon announce zero hour for the beginning of the battle of liberation from oppression and persecution," leader Abu Issa said in the video, which was posted on Youtube by an activist group called Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently.
