The Syrian Kurdish faction YPG has made another significant gain on the ground in Hasakeh Province, seizing the border town of Shadadi, along the Iraqi border, which had been under ISIS control for some time, and a key coordination site for ISIS across the border.
Shadadi was the site of a US airstrike just days ago, as US warplanes launched an air raid against the town’s bakery, killing 15 civilians who were lining up to buy bread in the morning.
The US didn’t react to the specific news of Shadadi falling, but did say that they had warned the YPG not to “exploit circumstances” to “seize additional territory” in northern Syria, trying to reassure Turkey the offensive would halt.
While the US has spent many months backing the YPG in its assorted offensives against ISIS, Turkish objections seem to have the US looking to stop their gains, and by extension ISIS losses.