Anadolu documents tunnels, prison beneath stadium liberated from YPG/SDF terror group in Syria's Raqqa

By Cagrı Kosak, Mehmet Burak Karacaoglu and Ahmet Karaahmet

ISTANBUL (AA) – Anadolu recently gained access to tunnels and a prison beneath a stadium that was recently liberated from the YPG/SDF terrorist group in Raqqa, Syria.

On Jan. 19, reporters from the Turkish news agency accompanied by Syrian soldiers filmed the network of tunnels and prison cells hidden under al-Aswad Stadium.

The Syrian Army launched an operation against the YPG/SDF on Jan. 16 in areas west of the Euphrates River. The offensive later expanded east of the river with participation from local Arab tribes, bringing much of the territory previously occupied by the terror group under government control.

A ceasefire and integration agreement reached between Damascus and the YPG/SDF includes the group’s complete withdrawal from Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor provinces east of the Euphrates River, the transfer of public institutions in Hasakah to state control, central government authority over all border crossings and energy resources, and the individual integration of YPG/SDF members into security forces.

The Syrian Army took control of Raqqa early Monday after reaching the province’s administrative borders late Saturday following operations that forced out the SDF, which had controlled the area since 2017 with US backing.

The Syrian Defense Ministry also announced a four-day ceasefire with the SDF, which took effect at 8 pm local time (1700GMT).