ISIS lights 4 men on fire and forces their families to watch

Jardine Malado Friday, December 23, 2016

Islamic State billboards are seen along a street in Raqqa, eastern Syria, which is controlled by the Islamic State, October 29, 2014. The billboard (R) reads:. "We will win despite the global coalition." | Reuters/Nour Fourat

The Islamic State has burned four civilians to death on Tuesday for supporting the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) and forced their families to watch the brutal execution.

According to a report from ARA News, the four men were arrested by the ISIS police force, known as Diwan al-Hisbah, three months ago. The men were charged with leaking information about the movements of ISIS in Deir ez-Zor apart from the accusations that they supported the YPG.

The YPG are currently fighting ISIS on multiple fronts in northern Syria as part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a coalition of multi-ethnic and multi-religious militias. The coalition recently launched a campaign to eliminate ISIS in the city of Raqqa.

The Sharia Court of Deir ez-Zor released a statement saying the civilians confessed to supporting and cooperating with the YPG. The court convicted the four men of apostasy and treason because it considered their actions to be a conscious abandonment of Islam.

An eyewitness said that "hundreds of people witnessed the execution, including the victims' families who were forced to watch their sons being burned to death." The charred bodies were reportedly thrown into the Euphrates river.

The offensive in Raqqa, dubbed as Euphrates Wrath Operation, was launched just weeks after the Iraqi-led coalition began the military operation to liberate Mosul from ISIS.

The SDF announced on Tuesday that it had managed to recapture 97 villages from ISIS ten days after it launched the second phase of the operation. The coalition managed to recapture about 216 square miles of land during the first phase.

"Our forces advanced towards Raqqa from two axes, al-Qadiriyah and Kerdoshan," the SDF said in a statement. "The operation will continue until we've liberated western Raqqa, which is the main goal of this phase of the Euphrates Wrath Operation."

The SDF said that it had dismantled 550 landmines that were planted by ISIS in western Raqqa, and the focus of the battle is now in the vicinity of the Jaabar Citadel.

Abdulqadir Fadel, a member of the Euphrates Wrath tactical center, said that the campaign is supported by the U.S. military.

"The US-led coalition continues to provide support to our forces in the campaign. There are also Western military experts participating in this operation," said Fadel.