(Stringer/Reuters) A
school that was targeted by what activists said were US-led airstrikes,
at Ain al-Arous town in Raqqa governorate in October 2014.
The US-led coalition
battling the Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL) has dramatically
intensified its air war against the militant group with strikes
pummeling the group's de-facto capital of Raqqa, Syria.
Since Wednesday, the coalition
has conducted aerial strikes against more than 70 ISIS targets. One
airstrike was responsible for bombing 20 ISIS staging areas around
Raqqa,
according to Brett McGurk, the US deputy special presidential envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIS.
In addition to the strikes
around Raqqa, the US-led coalition also destroyed ISIS fighting
positions and tactical units in Tal Abyad, Kobani, Aleppo, and Al
Bukamal in Syria, according to a press release from the coalition.
The latter sites in Syria have
been the location of fierce fighting between US-backed Kurdish YPG
forces and ISIS. Since the US began providing aerial support to the
Kurds, the YPG has
steadily eaten away at ISIS territory in northern Syria. At the height of its push, the YPG advanced to within 30 miles of Raqqa.
(Institute for the Study of War)
In addition to the
strikes in Syria, the US-led coalition carried out 14 airstrikes against
11 targets in Iraq. The strikes in Iraq destroyed heavy machinery,
tactical positions, bunkers, and staging areas across much of the north
and the west of the country.
"The coalition is committed to
diminishing Daesh's military capacity," Brig. Gen. Kevin Killea, the
chief of staff for the combined joint task force, said in a statement,
using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. "Our disciplined targeting process
and strike execution remain relentless in seeking out and prosecuting
Daesh targets."
The sudden ramp-up in airstrikes
comes as President Barack Obama recently promised to escalate attacks
against the militant group. The bombing runs against Raqqa were the most
intense against ISIS since operations began last August, ABC managing
editor Jon Williams
said.
"Indeed, we're intensifying our
efforts against ISIL's base in Syria," Obama said Tuesday during remarks
at the Pentagon. "Our airstrikes will continue to target the oil and
gas facilities that fund so much of their operations. We're going after
the ISIL leadership and infrastructure in Syria — the heart of ISIL that
pumps funds and propaganda to people around the world."
