The US-led coalition is building a new large base with an airstrip near the northern Syrian town of al-Darbasiyah next to the Turkish border.
ANF News, a Kurdish outlet, said that the locals in al-Darbasiyah are observing an increasing number of trucks loaded with building materials heading to the base site. Major infrastructures are reportedly being built there.
“The establishment of the military base south of al-Darbasiyah by the coalition comes to confirm the plan of a long-term deployment of international forces in northeastern Syria,” ANF quoted military sources in the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as saying.
Observers on Twitter had released satellite images showing the ongoing construction of the new US-led coalition base.
With help from @AuroraIntel I have been able to obtain a satellite picture from July 15th. The picture on the left is from that date, showing heavy activity on the airstrip. On the right is a picture from google maps that is several years old. pic.twitter.com/c8qx12ZwAn
— Woofers (@NotWoofers) July 23, 2019
A delegation of the US-led coalition, accompanied by SDF commanders, inspected the Tabqa airbase in Raqqa, last month. Back then, opposition sources said that the coalition is planning to deploy troops and helicopters there.
Earlier this year, President Donald Trump backed down from his decision to withdraw all U.S. troops from Syria. These new reports suggest that the U.S. is now working to step up its military presence in the war-torn country.
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