01/24/2021 Syria (International Christian Concern) – Today, U.S. forces enter their fifth day of fighting ISIS insurgents amidst a prison uprising in northeast Syria. U.S. troops are supporting the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as part of the U.S.-led coalition to defeat ISIS, which remains in the region, to support the SDF’s efforts to curb a reemergence of the extremist group.
The uprising began with an initial bomb attack last week at the Ghweran detention center, followed by subsequent fighting between ISIS fighters and detainees against SDF forces with U.S. air support, according to a statement from U.S. State Department Spokesperson Ned Price. The attack is part of a broader effort by ISIS to create another insurgency against the U.S. presence in the region and reemerge as a destabilizing force in Syria and Iraq.
Although earlier this year, the U.S. announced that it would reduce its role in the coalition against ISIS, the recent fighting underscores why the U.S. must not completely turn away from coalition efforts. “We continue to stand with our partners in the region to counter the remnants of ISIS,” said Spokesperson Price in the statement. “While the Coalition has severely degraded ISIS’s ability to conduct attacks, the group continues its attempts to destabilize the region. The losses sustained by our partners in these attacks are a stark reminder of the very real challenges the region continues to face.”
While the U.S. provides assurances that the coalition and the SDF have the situation under control, many Christians who have returned to Syria after the civil war and ISIS genocide are again concerned for their safety. There are reports that ISIS militants are once again going door-to-door looking for those who do not subscribe to their radical and violent form of Islam and executing civilians.
Many groups fear that the fighting may continue to escalate if the U.S. and its partners cannot contain the situation at the prison and the surrounding area.
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