Page 10 - AT

A10 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 20 February 2019

Pressure builds to get civilians out of last IS-held enclave

By SARAH EL DEEB fled through it. About 40 ci-
Associated Press vilians, including a French
AL-OMAR OIL FIELD BASE, woman, left the enclave
Syria (AP) — Dozens of Tuesday morning, appar-
trucks arrived Tuesday at ently after paying smug-
the outskirts of a besieged glers, said a member of the
enclave held by the Islamic Free Burma Rangers, a vol-
State group in eastern Syria, unteer medical group.
signaling renewed efforts Adnan Afrin, a commander
to evacuate hundreds of with the SDF, said a number
civilians trapped in the mili- of civilians and some fight-
tants’ last patch of territory ers have turned themselves
along the Euphrates River. in, and that the trucks went
A spokesman for the U.S.- to the corridor to get them.
backed Syrian militia that He said those who surren-
is spearheading the fight dered included Europeans
against IS said a military and Americans. He report-
operation aimed at oust- ed some clashes on the
ing the extremists from the other side of the enclave
enclave will begin if they between SDF fighters and
don’t surrender. IS militants who want to
Such an operation would continue the battle. An SDF
take place after separating commander, Zana Amedi,
or evacuating civilians from Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighter stands atop a building used as a temporary base near the said his group gave a fi-
the militants, estimated last land still held by Islamic State militants in Baghouz, Syria, Monday, Feb. 18, 2019. nal warning to the remain-
to be about 300 combat- Associated Press ing militants to surrender.
ants, said Mustafa Bali, the increasing the pressure on that once spread across has lasted for more than a In a Twitter post, he said
spokesman for the Syrian those holding out. Gunfire much of Syria and Iraq at week. Nearly 20,000 civil- most of them are seriously
Democratic Forces. echoed over the hills in the its height in 2014 to a speck ians had left the shrinking wounded or sick. A U.N. of-
Just before sundown Tues- distance as soldiers from of land on the countries’ area in recent weeks be- ficial said she is concerned
day, more than 40 trucks the SDF waited for the ex- shared border. In that tiny fore the evacuation halted about the condition of the
headed toward Baghouz, pected evacuation. pocket on the banks of the last week when the mili- some 200 families trapped
the last village where IS mili- “We are working on either river, the militants are hid- tants closed all the roads in the enclave. In a state-
tants are trapped with hun- separating the civilians ing among civilians in the out of the tiny area. ment issued in Geneva,
dreds of civilians. There was or evacuating them and shadow of a small hill, en- AP journalists saw dozens of U.N. human rights chief
no sign of the civilians re- raiding the place,” Bali circled by forces waiting to trucks moving to the tip of a Michelle Bachelet said the
turning by dark, and on the told The Associated Press. declare the territorial de- humanitarian corridor used extremists are actively pre-
other edge of the IS-con- The Islamic State group feat of the extremist group. in past weeks. That corridor venting civilians, including
trolled territory, more than has been reduced from its Bali’s comments signaled had been deserted for the women and children, from
one airstrike hit, apparently self-proclaimed caliphate an easing of a standoff that last week after thousands leaving the area. q

Suicide bombing kills 3 policemen near Cairo’s famed bazaar

By SAMY MAGDY checkpoint and wounded security officials said Tues-
Associated Press three people. Following day. The raids involved
CAIRO (AP) — The death Monday’s explosion, which clashes with Islamic mili-
toll from a late-night suicide shattered windows and tants in the desert outside
blast near Cairo’s famed blew curtains off nearby the city of el-Arish, they
tourist market rose to three balconies, police and sol- said. It was unclear when
on Tuesday after a police diers cordoned off the nar- the battle took place.
officer died of his wounds, row streets around the ba- Officials spoke on condi-
Egypt’s Interior Ministry said. zaar. A body, presumably tion of anonymity because
The fatalities in the attack of the attacker, covered they were not authorized to
near the Khan el-Khalili ba- with a white sheet stained talk to the media.
zaar in the heart of Cairo with blood, was seen ly- Egypt has been battling
were all policemen. The ing on the ground in the Islamic militants for years,
explosion late Monday also blocked-off area, close to but the insurgency gained
wounded two other police- Egypt’s renowned Al-Azhar strength after the 2013
men and a woman, offi- mosque. In a house near- overthrow of an elected
cials said. Policemen and residents surround the site of an explosion in by, police found a bomb but divisive Islamist presi-
the Gamaliya district, near Cairo’s famed Khan el-Khalili tourist
The attack was a rarity for marketplace in Cairo, Egypt, late Monday, Feb. 18, 2019. and bomb-making mate- dent, Mohammed Morsi.
the central area of Egypt’s Associated Press rial, which prompted the The militants have mainly
capital amid a years-long cers approached to arrest was not known and no mili- evacuation of the whole targeted security forces
security crackdown under him. He was wanted in a tant group claimed respon- building, said the security and Christians. Egypt last
President Abdel-Fattah el- bombing last Friday near sibility for the bombings. officials. year launched a wide-
Sissi. a mosque in Cairo’s district The ministry had blamed In the restive north of scale security operation
The Interior Ministry said of Giza and the police had members of the outlawed Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, se- focused on northern Sinai,
the attacker, 37-year-old been monitoring his move- Muslim Brotherhood for curity forces killed 16 mili- where an Islamic State af-
al-Hassan Abdullah, blew ments, the statement said. last week’s attack, which tants and seized explosives filiate has carried out many
himself up after police offi- The attacker’s affiliation it said targeted a security and weapons in two raids, attacks in recent years.q