ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – Engineers opened flood gates on a Tabqa dam spillway, easing pressure on the structure amid concerns the dam on the Euphrates River upstream from Raqqa has been damaged in the conflict with ISIS and may burst, causing a humanitarian disaster. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) reported that engineers and a team from the Syrian Red Crescent had come under ISIS mortar fire while inspecting the dam. “Despite Daesh shelling, engineers have managed to drain the excess water,” the Kurdish YPG tweeted using an Arabic acronym for ISIS, adding that the dam “is properly functioning now.” The Raqqa liberation campaign published comments from an engineer, Na’aim al-Musa, who had worked on the dam in the early years of its operation, saying that rumours about its possible collapse are nonsense. The SDF are progressing against ISIS in al-Tabqa. They have cut the road linking the town with Raqqa on the south bank of the Euphrates and are now in control of territory on three sides of the town and dam. This “tightens siege on Daesh in Raqqa and denies their maneuverability south of the Euphrates,” the YPG tweeted on Wednesday. In Raqqa, new reports of ISIS fleeing the city have emerged. The Wall Street Journal reported residents saying the extremist group’s religious police had left, there were fewer fighters patrolling the streets, and fewer military checkpoints. Last week, Rudaw reported that ISIS leadership had relocated to Syria’s eastern desert region along the Euphrates River valley from the Deir ez-Zur area to across the border with Iraq. “As ISIS is being squeezed out of Mosul and isolated from Raqqa they are centered largely along the Euphrates River valley, ranging from Raqqa all the way down through Deir ez-Zor, Mayadin, Abu Kamal, and then over into Al-Qa'im in Iraq,” the press office of the US-led global anti-ISIS coalition told Rudaw English by email. “That is probably their largest concentration of forces.” Inside the city, ISIS has forced all the men to dress as the militants do in order allow ISIS fighters to blend in with the civilian population, AP reported. ISIS has routinely used human shields as they have fought to hold onto territory they once controlled in their self-declared caliphate. Raqqa had a pre-ISIS population of approximately 220,000. The offensive against ISIS in the city of Raqqa is expected to begin in early April. The SDF is being backed by the US-led coalition in their campaign to oust ISIS from Raqqa. The coalition is providing airstrikes, advice, and training. In early March, the US deployed a Marine force to northern Syria for the Raqqa offensive. Testifying before the US House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, CENTCOM commander Gen. Joseph Votel said the forces were deployed as part of constant assessments of the needs of the campaign, in which, he insisted, the Americans’ role remains unchanged – advice and assist. “One of our key principles here is to help our partners fight, but not fight for them,” Votel said.
