Mar 23, 2019, 12:40 PM
SDF: ISIL defeated in final Syria victory
US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces announce the elimination of ISIL in Syria, ending a four-year battle.
The US-backed fighters in Syria's east have declared their final victory over ISIL, ending a four-year battle against the group that once held territory spanning a third of Syria and Iraq.
An official of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) announced the defeat of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, or ISIS) group via Twitter on Saturday.
On Friday, Mustafa Bali, the head of the SDF media office, said on Twitter that heavy fighting continued around Baghouz to "finish off whatever remains of ISIS".
The US Defense Department said on Friday that ISIL no longer held any territory in Syria, according to a White House spokeswoman.
US Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan briefed President Donald Trump as he was travelling to Florida on Air Force One, spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.
She said that the "territorial caliphate has been eliminated in Syria". Responding to a question regarding whether the armed group's territory had been "100 percent" eliminated, Sanders said "yes".
The SDF has been battling for two weeks to defeat ISIL in Baghouz in southeastern Syria at the Iraqi border.
It was all that remained of the territory the armed group ruled.
AJ
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