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Fears Over Damage to Syrian Dam as Battle For Raqqa Intensifies

by Henry Ridgwell

   LONDON --

   Local villagers say Islamic State forces have threatened to destroy the
   Tabqa dam, a key staging post on the Euphrates River close to the
   Syrian city of Raqqa, the terror group's de facto capital.
   The complex came under mortar fire from Islamic State fighters last
   week, as Syrian engineers attempted to carry out urgent repairs on the
   four-kilometer long dam. They were forced to retreat, but did manage to
   open a spillway to relieve the pressure of water on the dam.

   U.S.-backed coalition forces deny the dam itself is in danger, but
   Islamic State militants claim it is vulnerable to collapse. That could
   be a delaying tactic, said Syria analyst Kamal Alam of Britain's Royal
   United Services Institute.
   "This was foreseen for the last six or seven months. The Syrian
   government was very clear when it said that this could be used as a
   tactic, which meant they would have to delay their operations, because
   there was a clamor for the Syrian Arab army to go in after Raqqa."
   Tabqa has been an Islamic State stronghold since 2014 and it is
   believed many of its senior commanders are based there. The town is a
   key target of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) as they
   approach nearby Raqqa.

   FILE - This photo from a video provided by the Syria Democratic Forces
   (SDF), shows fighters from the SDF opening fire on an Islamic State
   group's position, in Raqqa's eastern countryside, Syria, March 6, 2017.

   Residents of villages downstream fear Islamic State could still attempt
   to blow up the dam.
   "We are really scared about the dam. People came and said that ISIS
   were going to blow it up. If they blow it up it, we won't have any
   water, we will die of thirst. There won't be any more water, and that
   will mean death," said Raheel Hassan Mahmoud, a resident of Bir Hussein
   al-Hammud village next to the dam.

   This still image taken from drone footage posted online Monday, March.
   27, 2017 by the Aamaq News Agency, a media arm of the Islamic State
   group, shows smoke rising near the Tabqa Dam, in Raqqa, Syria.

   Destruction of the dam by ISIS would also cause catastrophic flooding
   in towns and cities downstream, said Alam.
   "Maybe as a final act of desperation, they could. Again, it goes to
   show what level they would go to damage civilian populations. But I
   don't think there's any indication at the moment that they will do it,"
   he said. "I think coalition airstrikes are also a big threat. And the
   coordination in the air has not been so apparent in recent months."
   Militias fighting under the SDF alliance said the final assault on
   Raqqa will begin in the coming days.