Increasing the pressure on IS in Syria, a United States-backed alliance has announced a push to take back the key city of Raqqa.
A spokeswoman for the Syria Democratic Forces, the SDF, made up of Kurdish and Arab armed groups, announced what they're calling the "Euphrates Anger" campaign.
"We bring to you the good news, the launch of the all-out, large-scale operation for the liberation of Raqqa and its countryside. To break from the shackles of the international terrorism represented by ISIL, which has taken the city for its alleged capital. The operation began on Saturday."
The SDF colaition is urging displaced civilians from Raqqa to go to what it's calling "liberated territory", and avoid IS danger zones.
But concerns about Turkey are threatening to sidetrack preparations for the offensive, with the SDF declaring Turkey will not be involved in its push.
But Turkey, a vocal critic of the increasing influence of Kurds in northern Syria, has stated that Raqqa would be part of its own army's plans against IS.
Turkish rebels fighting for the Free Syrian Army frequently clash with Syrian Kurdish forces, the YPG, and its allies.
The operation has been a long time in the making, with international figures calling for action targeting Raqqa as a likely stronghold for IS fighters.
The United States Special Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter IS, also called Daesh, Brett McGurk, says he hopes for the involvement of a larger domestic contingent.
"When it comes to Raqqa I want to make very clear it is our principle priority throughout this campaign that the vanguard of the force that takes major territory from Daesh should be locally based forces. So when it comes to Raqqa we want a force that ultimately liberates Raqqa that is primarily from the local area - Arabs from the area. And so we have trained many of these fighters and that force will continue to grow as we get to the subsequent phases of the campaign."
This new operation comes as troops in Iraq continue an assault on the key northern city of Mosul, with a top Kurdish security official warning soldiers to expect fierce resistance from IS fighters.
Masrour Barzani, head of the Kurdistan Regional Government Security Council, is predicting a protracted battle.
"Even if you militarily defeat them, from all these areas, as an ideology it is not going to be vanquished. So the fight against ISIS is going to be a long fight. Not only militarily but also economically, ideologically."
Meanwhile the whereabouts of IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi remain unknown, with Mr Barzani suggesting he may be being hidden by his advisors.
Mr Barzani also accuses IS of using chemical weapons such as chlorine and mustard gas.
Jennifer Cafarella, from the US-based Institute for the Study of War, has told Al Jazeera the intense twin battles could back IS into a corner.
"A priority for the Coalition is to not let ISIS escape, essentially, we want to defeat ISIS where it is and prevent the so-called ISIS tumour from continuing to metastasise. By putting simultaneous pressure on Raqqa city and Mosul cities at the same time, the Coalition can create multiple problems for ISIS to force ISIS to fight in multiple locations, and therein essentially draw out the ISIS strength over time."
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