The US-led coalition against Daesh terrorist group is helping to train a police force for the Syrian city of Raqqa in anticipation of its capture from the militants, two Kurdish officials said.

They said the political wing of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab forces, also had advanced plans to install a civilian council in the city once it falls. 

It would consist mainly of Arabs, in line with Raqqa's demography, but also include Kurds and other ethnic groups.

The extent of Kurdish influence in the future running of the city is sensitive both for residents and for NATO member Turkey, which has fought its own Kurdish insurgency for three decades and fears growing Kurdish ascendancy just over the border in northern Syria.

The United States, which backs the SDF, says a final decision has yet to be taken on how and when Raqqa - the de facto capital of Daesh in Syria - will be captured.

Source: MENA