Withdraws from Azaz
ISIS withdraws completely from the town of Azaz on the Turkish border ahead of a deadline from the Al Qaeda-affiliated Al-Nusra Front to retreat or face all-out war. An activist in the town says ISIS fighters take their weapons, climb into their vehicles and set off before dawn. Residents celebrate in the streets chanting “Free Syrian Army” as they throng returning fighters from more moderate brigades, driven out by ISIS in September. It is not clear where the ISIS militants fighters have gone but they are said to have headed east to strongholds in the eastern part of Aleppo province and possibly on to the city of Raqaa, the group’s self-styled capital.