Paris: The international coalition battling the Islamic State group in its Syrian stronghold of Raqa will begin a final push on the city in the coming days, French Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Friday.


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"Today, we can say that Raqa is surrounded and the battle will begin in the coming days," he told France`s CNEWS television.


Raqa is one of two major strongholds of the IS along with the Iraqi city of Mosul, which Iraqi forces in October launched a massive operation to recapture.
"This will be a very hard battle but essential," Le Drian said.


IS is under pressure from several directions in northern Syria, with Russia supporting its Syrian ally President Bashar al-Assad on one front and Turkey providing air cover for rebel groups battling the jihadists on another.