ISIS has kidnapped 2,000 civilians to use as 'human shields'

Rodi Said/Reuters

A report verified on Friday by US-backed forces and a separate human rights organization claimed that Islamic State militants in the city of Manbij, Syria had kidnapped around 2,000 civilians to use as “human shields.”

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights described that during ISIS’ retreat from Manbij to Jarabulus, a city on the Turkish border, the militants took ahold of their hostages in hopes to slow the SDF’s advances on what was once a major ISIS-held city.

In order to accomplish taking such a large number of hostages, a report by the AFP suggests that ISIS took the residents’ cars and forced civilians into them as they made their retreat — preventing the SDF from targeting them.

After SDF forces began their offensive on May 31, they’ve so far liberated about 90% of Manbij and even rescued 2,500 captive civilians; however, dozens of ISIS fighters still remain and have put up a noticeable resistance.

This wouldn’t be the first time that ISIS has taken hostages during a retreat. More than 400 civilians, including women and children, were taken from eastern Syria in January. Although 270 of them were eventually released, the jihadists had also used hostages for booby-trapped cars and suicide bombings.

Manbij has been a critical Syrian city for ISIS’ supply routes to their main stronghold in Raqqa. After being assaulted not only by the SDF but US-led coalition forces, the militants here have been making numerous blunders during their operations — including having 83 oil tankers out in the open for an easy airstrike.

However, liberating the city has taken a heavy toll as well. The UN has claimed that more than 78,000 people have been displaced since the assault began; and the Observatory suggested that at least 437 civilians, 105 of them children, were killed.

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