Tunnels, civilians slow capture of Islamic State's last Syria pocket

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia has surrounded the militants at the village of Baghouz near the Iraqi border and is trying to complete an evacuation of civilians from the tiny area before storming it or forcing a surrender. Throughout its steady advance across the Syrian stretch of Islamic State's self-declared caliphate, the SDF has been slowed by the group's extensive use of tunnels and human shields - tactics it says are still being deployed in Baghouz. "It is expected that there are still undiscovered tunnels, even rooms underground," said Mustafa Bali, an SDF spokesman.

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