Brett McGurk, the president's special envoy for the US-led anti-ISIS coalition, took a trip to a city in Syria that was liberated from the terrorist group about a year ago, and photos show that the place is still in bad shape.
Kobani, Syria was devastated in the fight to drive ISIS (also known as the Islamic State, ISIL, and Daesh) from the city. It's unclear how the city will rebuild — the rest of the country is still in turmoil as the civil war drags on in its fifth year.
McGurk's visit to Syria is the first for a high-level US official since ambassador Robert Ford left Damascus in 2012, according to The Washington Post.
The envoy met with local anti-ISIS fighters in northern Syria and tweeted photos of his visit. The pictures show a city full of rubble and collapsed buildings:
Spent two days in northern #Syria this past weekend to review ongoing fight against #ISIL. #ISIS#Daesh 1/6 pic.twitter.com/7zHXNJste6
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
Visit included one full day in #Kobani to review security & humanitarian situation w/local leaders & citizens. 2/6 pic.twitter.com/yjidOmKobs
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
Remains of #ISIL terrorists are still being removed from their former strongholds near the #Kobani city center. 3/6 pic.twitter.com/eaV4HHKEhv
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
Paid respects to over 1,000 Kurdish martyrs from #Kobani battle. #ISIL's siege was broken 1-year ago last week. 4/6 pic.twitter.com/H8E19KDGbf
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
Also discussed next steps in Syria campaign w/battle-tested & multi-ethnic anti-ISIL fighters. #ISIS#Daesh#SDF 5/6 pic.twitter.com/a9f4b9QSRp
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
#ISIL terrorists do not stand a chance in the face of the resilient people of #Kobani, #Tikrit, #Ramadi, & soon ... #Raqqa and #Mosul. 6/6
— Brett McGurk (@brett_mcgurk) February 1, 2016
McGurk also visited Iraq to meet with senior officials and discuss the fight against ISIS.
The US is carrying out a campaign of airstrikes on ISIS targets in Syria, with the hope of moving in on the terrorist group's de-facto capital of Raqqa. During a Pentagon press briefing on Monday, commander of the anti-ISIS coalition Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland told reporters that taking Raqqa back would be the "the beginning of the end" for ISIS.
SEE ALSO: The commander of the anti-ISIS war just denounced Ted Cruz's strategy for fighting the group
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: Fashion designer Nicole Miller reveals what Donald Trump is really like