Damascus accuses US-led coalition of trying to fragment Syria

A key political and media adviser to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has accused the US-led coalition of seeking to fragment Syria, saying the plan will fail.

"The targeting of civilians in Raqqa (the de facto capital of the Islamic State group) and the crimes committed against them... is something that sparks questions and it's most likely that the US is trying to terrorize the Arab citizens in Raqqa into leaving their areas to establish a suitable ground for federalisation or the (creation of) Kurdish entity" in northern Syria, Bouthaina Shaaban said on Thursday.

The US will fail to fragment Syria "because the Syrian people are one", she said.

Her remarks came as the US-led coalition is throwing a heavy support behind the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is fighting the IS in Raqqa.

However, the killing of civilians on a daily basis pushed the Syrian government to condemn the US-led coalition's "crimes" in Raqqa and urge the UN to dissolve the coalition.

While the SDF is advancing inside Raqqa, the Syrian army and tribal forces are advancing against the extremists in the countryside, coming close to the last IS-held town in the eastern Raqqa countryside.

The army forces and allied troops have already reclaimed the western and southern countryside of Raqqa.

--IANS

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