Battle of al-Rai (August 2016)

On 8 April 2016, rebels from the Hawar Kilis Operations Room captured al-Rai and more than a dozen other villages, but withdrew after an ISIL counter-offensive 3 days later that recaptured almost all the villages they have lost. The rebels also briefly took over the town for a few hours in June before being driven out.[3]

On 15 August 2016, after heavy artillery bombardment rebels began to storm the al-Rai grain silos and captured the silos along with several other positions.[7] However, they were forced to withdraw the next morning after an ISIL counterattack from the north which recaptured all the points ISIL lost.[8] Landmines played a role in slowing down the offensive.[2]

On 17 August, FSA fighters launched a second assault after targeting IS positions with rocket artillery, breaking through the first lines of defense and re-entering the town.[9] The FSA blew up 3 car bombs during the battle[10] and fully captured al-Rai and its border crossing later that day, taking a number of surrendering ISIL militants as prisoners of war.[5]

On the same day, the USAF operating as part of the CJTF-OIR conducted air support for the rebels during the battle by bombing several IS units near al-Rai.[11] Fighting continued in the outskirts of the town as ISIL retained its headquarters in nearby Dudyan.[2]

Due to the short time given to rebels to fortify the area, IS launched a rapid counter-offensive from the east on 19 August and recaptured the grain silos and nearby hilltops.[12] However, the rebels repelled the attack on the town and claimed to have killed more than 10 IS fighters.[6] FSA fighters also recaptured the grain silos the next day.[4]

On 20 August, a large number of rebels and a military convoy containing more than 50 vehicles loaded with heavy and medium weapons from al-Rai were transferred to the Turkish border with Jarabulus, as the Turkish Armed Forces prepared for an attack on Jarabulus.[1]

Between 27 and 28 August, the rebels claimed to had capture three villages east of al-Rai.[13][14] However, it was reported that on 27 August, IS recaptured al-Rai.[15][16] The next day, al-Rai was once again reported to be rebel-held.[17] By 4 September, FSA captured all of the ISIL-controlled territory along the Turkish-Syrian border.[18]