Kurdish SDF fighters call for safe corridor to withdraw from Raqqa ISIS prison
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – An official at Al-Aqtan Prison north of Raqqa, northern Syria, appealed on Thursday for the opening of a safe corridor to allow Kurdish fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to withdraw from what he described as one of the “most dangerous prisons” in the Raqqa countryside.
Chiya Kobani, an SDF leader responsible for the prison, said in a recorded video message, “As members of the Syrian Democratic Forces at al-Aqtan Prison, we are currently guarding the detention facility holding members of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Raqqa,” stressing that “as the entire world knows, ISIS continues to pose a global threat.”
He added that the SDF was calling on the Global Coalition and all concerned parties to assume responsibility for the prison under international guarantees, while also demanding a safe passage to allow guards to reach secure areas under the same guarantees.
Kobani explained that Raqqa had come under repeated attacks by forces of the Syrian transitional government in recent days, noting that while SDF forces had withdrawn from certain positions, prison guards could have also moved to safer areas, but chose to remain due to the dangers posed by the facility and their responsibility to contain the threat.
“We are under heavy attack by forces attempting to seize control of the prison, and we have reached a breaking point,” he said.
Kobani also warned that prison staff are facing severe shortages, saying they are without water, electricity or fuel, and that food supplies are “extremely limited.”