Beirut: A looming US-backed offensive on the self-declared Daesh capital of Raqqa in Syria carries huge political significance for the outgoing Obama administration.
In March, Russian President Vladimir Putin scored a political victory by touting the ousting of Daesh from the ancient city of Palmyra.
The US-backed offensive could be an attempt to score a similar victory for the Obama administration before his presidential term ends this year.
The US has recently rejected a Russian proposal to cooperate against Daesh on the Syrian battlefield.
In anticipation of the assault from the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), Daesh is stocking up on ammunition and food.
The SDF is made up mostly of Kurdish fighters, but also has some Syrian Arabs in its ranks.
The head of Daesh in Raqqa, Awwad Makhlaf, has forbidden all men aged 18 and above from travelling so they will have all the men necessary to confront the offensive.
Even those previously granted medical leave outside Daesh-held territory have been commanded to stay.
Some Daesh fighters have been asked to leave the Aleppo countryside to guard the critical and strategic Euphrates Dam, around 40km upstream from the city, and the Assad Lake, Syria’s largest water reservoir.
The dam was built with Russian help in the 1970s and it generates hydroelectric power and irrigates lands on both sides of the Euphrates.
Women and children began to evacuate the Syrian city of Raqqa last week. Approximately 300 women and children have been bussed to Deir Al Zor, including the wives of Daesh fighters.
Hayat Boum Al Deen, a French woman whose husband famously carried out a series of terror attacks in Paris in November 2015, is believed to be among them.
Most of the Daesh wives are believed to be between the ages of 18 and 25. The convoys carrying the women and children were moved under the protection of Daesh leaders Abu Jaber Al Numani and Abu Rashid Al Deiri.
