HTS and ISIS militias and Turkish-backed mercenaries have launched an attack on Al-Aqtan Prison in Raqqa where ISIS members are held.
Amid ongoing artillery and heavy weapons attacks, reports say that mercenary groups have surrounded the prison with convoys.
SDF and YPG-YPJ fighters guarding the prison are continuing their resistance against the attacks.
The HTS militias, often referred to as the Syrian Army but essentially include ISIS members and other jihadist factions, seek to free the ISIS members held at Al-Aqtan Prison.
The Al-Aqtan Prison, which houses around 2,000 ISIS members, has been under attack by Syrian government–affiliated gangs since 18 January. The SDF and YPJ fighters, along with Counter-Terrorism Units, are resisting the assaults to prevent ISIS members from escaping. Despite calls to the International Coalition and international powers to take action to prevent escapes due to these attacks, no response has been received so far.
The SDF announced on Monday that many of their fighters had been martyred as a result of the ongoing attacks on Al-Aqtan Prison. The SDF-YPJ fighters guarding the prison issued an urgent call to the international community and called on the International Coalition to intervene against the militias attacking the prison with heavy weapons.
The Al-Shaddadi Prison in southern Hesekê, which holds thousands of detainees from the terrorist organization ISIS, was also subjected to repeated attacks carried out by factions affiliated with Damascus. The prison fell outside the control of the SDF on Monday as a result of continued attacks and the inaction of the International Coalition, which operates a base only two kilometers from the prison.
On Tuesday, the SDF announced that their forces were compelled to withdraw from al-Hol camp due to the international community’s indifference towards the ISIS issue and its failure to assume its responsibilities in addressing this serious matter. The SDF units were redeployed to areas surrounding cities in northern Syria that are facing increasing dangers and threats.