UPDATE - Syrian Army says forces started entering Tabqa city, encircled PKK terrorists at airbase

​​​​​​​ADDS CONTROLS BY ARMY, DECKS

By Mohmmad Sio

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Syrian Army said Saturday that its forces have begun entering the city of Tabqa in Raqqa province in northeastern Syria from several sides and encircled the PKK-affiliated terrorists inside the Tabqa Military Airbase.

In a statement carried by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), the army’s Operations Command said troops began advancing into Tabqa simultaneously from multiple directions.

The army took control of the military airbase and expelled PKK terrorists from the site, the command added.

The army also secured control of the al-Mansoura Dam, formerly known as the Baath Dam, along with the towns of Ratla and al-Hamam in the Raqqa countryside, bringing troops to within less than 5 kilometers (3 miles) of the city’s western entrance, according to a statement by the army’s Operations Command carried by Alikhbariah TV.

The field gains come as the army expanded its control across the Raqqa countryside, entering new cities, towns and villages as part of continued deployments west of the Euphrates River following the withdrawal of the YPG/SDF terror group.

Meanwhile, amid heavy clashes with the Syrian Army in Tabqa, YPG/SDF terror elements have begun withdrawing from areas west of the Euphrates River in convoys.

The developments came as Ferhat Abdi Sahin, a ringleader of the YPG/SDF terror group targeted by the army's military operation west of the Euphrates, claimed that terror elements would withdraw to regions east of the river starting at 7 am local time (0400GMT)

In March 2025, the Syrian presidency announced an agreement for the terrorist organization YPG/SDF's integration into state institutions, reaffirming the country’s territorial unity and rejecting any attempts at division.