Syrian Democratic Forces

U.S.-backed fighters have breached the ancient wall of the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed capital, the Syrian city of Raqqa, marking new progress in the battle to rout the militants from their most important strongholds, the U.S. military said Tuesday.

US-backed fighters pierced jihadist-held Raqqa from the south for the first time on Sunday, crossing the Euphrates River to enter a new part of the Syrian city, a monitor said, writes The Guardian.
The Syrian Democratic Forces have spent months closing in on the Islamic State group's bastion Raqqa and entered the city's east and west for the first time last month.

Brett McGurk, the Special Envoy of the U.S. President for the Global Coalition to Counter the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), arrived in Ankara on June 30 after carrying out inspections in the north of Syria on June 28-29. 

An ivory-coloured rosary swings from the rearview mirror of Abboud Seryan’s pickup truck as he speeds through Syria’s Raqa, inspecting the positions of fellow Christian fighters taking on the Islamic State group.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan spoke on the phone with U.S. President Donald Trump on June 30, while Brett McGurk, the U.S. special envoy for the coalition to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), was holding discussions in Ankara following his visit to northern Syria. 

Brett McGurk, the U.S. special envoy for the coalition to defeat the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), is set to hold discussions in Ankara on June 30 after his visit to Syria.

McGurk will have talks at the Foreign Ministry and Defense Ministry, according to sources. 

As the defense ministers of NATO allies met in Brussels to discuss key global issues, Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Işık was set to meet with U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis late on June 28, after the latter left open the possibility of longer-term assistance to the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened the US on Sunday over its arming of Kurdish forces in Syria, calling for a review of the Nato military alliance in response.   

The Kurds have been the most effective fighters against the islamist jihadists of ISIS in both Iraq and Syria. A special place is reserved among them for the brave and fearless female fighters, who are rightly being described as real modern-day Amazons. A video that emerged simply proves this point, as a female fighter of the YPJ can be seen remaining calm after a bullet barley misses her.

Kurdish activists claim Turkey is building up its military forces in northern Syria for an assault on the Kurdish held district of Afrin, a development that could cause serious setbacks in the ongoing American-backed operation to liberate the defacto capital of ISIS, Raqqa.