US-backed Syria force has ousted IS from half of Raqa: monitor

A US-backed alliance has ousted Islamic State group jihadists from half of their Syrian bastion Raqa, a monitor said today, less than two months after its fighters entered the city.

"The Syrian Democratic Forces are now in control of 50 percent of Raqa city despite the fierce resistance mounted by IS," said Rami Abdel Rahman of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.