A NEW BATTLE – AT 10:19 A.M. ET:  Today is the 73rd anniversary of D-Day, the invasion of northern France by the United States and its allies, an invasion that led to the end of Nazi Germany less than a year later.

Now, today, another military operation is underway, this time in the Mideast, part of President Trump's pledge to destroy ISIS.  From the Daily Mail: 

US-backed forces are closing in on one of Islamic State's most important cities as pressure is piled onto the jihadists whose self-declared caliphate is in retreat across Syria and Iraq.   

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said today it launched a battle to capture Raqqa, Islamic State's de facto Syrian capital, as heavy shelling and airstrikes were heard in the area.

Spokesman Talal SIlo said fighting would be 'fierce because Daesh (Islamic State) will die to defend their so-called capital'.  

The assault overlaps with the final stages of the U.S.-backed attack to recapture the Iraqi city of Mosul from Islamic State. 

It follows months of advances to the north, east and west of Raqqa by the SDF, which includes Arab and Kurdish militias.

Islamic State fighters were jubilant after they captured Raqqa from rebel groups in 2014 and it has been used as an operations base to plan attacks in the West ever since.

Silo said the assault had begun from the north, east and west of the city, which is bordered to the south by the River Euphrates.

'The coalition has a big role in the success of the operations. In addition to warplanes, there are coalition forces working side by side with the SDF,' Silo said by phone from the Hukoumiya farms area, 10 km (6 miles) north of Raqqa, where the SDF later declared the start of the assault.

COMMENT:  Americans don't seem very interested in the struggle in Syria, and former President Obama didn't do too much to explain the stakes.  After all, intellectuals don't deal with we common folk.  But if Trump can smash ISIS, it will be a major accomplishment, and an astonishing victory.  It can change the face of the war on terror.  We'll follow the battle.

June 6,  2017