US-backed militiamen besieging the last shred of ISIS territory in eastern Syria said on Tuesday (March 19) they had captured 157 mostly foreign militiamen as they tracked their efforts to escape the enclave.
“Our units monitored a group of terrorists, trailed them and captured 157 fully militarily equipped terrorists,” a statement by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia said.
The captured men were “mostly foreign nationals” said Mustafa Bali, head of the SDF’s media office, on Twitter. Neither he nor the SDF statement said when the capture took place.
Both the SDF and the US-led coalition that backs it have said the remaining ISIS militants inside the Baghouz pocket are among its most hardened foreign operatives.
Over the past two months, more than 60,000 people have poured out of the group’s dwindling enclave, nearly half of whom were surrendering supporters of ISIS, including some 5,000 fighters.
Based on Reuters
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