Syrian women freed from ISIS, following the example of female Kurdish fighters, are taking up arms in order to help in the next fight.

Female residents originally from al-Bab in northern Syria who were living in nearby Manbij when it was liberated have been so inspired by the fighting of the female soldiers in the Kurdish Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) that they have created their own all-female battalion ahead of the battle for their city.

“When ISIS invaded al-Bab city, they detained my brother and killed him. I have been criticizing the practices of ISIS for a long time. I have been arrested and tortured several times at the hands of ISIS terrorists,” one new member told local news.

“An ISIS female terrorist was responsible for torturing me in a very brutal way. And now I’ve joined the al-Bab Military Council in order to fight those terrorists.”

Manbij town was liberated in August after two years of ISIS rule by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) following two months of intense fighting.

Local SDF military commanders immediately set about creating a military council to plan the next offensive - retaking al-Bab, 30 miles (50 kilometers) away, ARA News reported.

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