IS pulls families out of towns in Syrian north

Civilians ride on a motorcycle past an Islamic court building that was used by Islamic State militants in Manbij, Aleppo Governorate, Syria, August 16, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Islamic State fighters have evacuated their families from a Syrian town at the Turkish border near a city that they recently lost to U.S.-backed militias, a monitor group said on Friday, a sign they may be preparing to face an attack there.

Last week's capture by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) of Manbij, 25 miles (40km) to their south, has left Islamic State fighters in Jarablus in danger of being cut off from the militant group's main territorial possessions.