ISIS has been forced from one of its stronghold outposts, a key access point to its self-declared capital, where it was entrenched for two years. And the defeat along a vital stretch of terrain could be a potential blueprint for more military successes against the militants.
In freshly-liberated Tal Abyad -- not far from the Syria-Turkey border -- the scars of battle are everywhere, as are ISIS booby traps.
ISIS ruled this rural landscape with impunity, fortifying it to defend a vital frontier and a key access point to their capital.
The YPG, the Kurdish fighting force, had tried and failed to capture key towns in the past. ISIS would counter each assault with heavy weapons, car bombs and suicide bombers, each time forcing the YPG to retreat.
But in the last month, the battlefield dynamics have changed. Coalition airstrikes pounded ISIS fighting positions, taking out the terrorist group's armored vehicles, heavy weapons, headquarters, and other targets, allowing the YPG to barrel through around 80 kilometers (50 miles) of ISIS territory to reach the major prize -- Tal Abyad. The town is the gateway to a crucial border crossing with Turkey.
The combination of coalition power in the air and a committed force on the ground was so effective that ISIS fighters rapidly retreated. ISIS blew up a bridge, and put up a fierce, but brief, fight -- and then drew back.
The Kurdish force had estimated it would take them weeks to defeat ISIS in Tal Abyad. In the end, it happened in two days.
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