JOHN IRVINE:

Earlier, the men, all Arabs, talked about two things they share, belonging to same tribe and losing a love one to Islamic State.

Earthquake was at university studying to be a human rights lawyer when he enlisted to restore human rights to victims of I.S. His demonstration with a meat cleaver was to explain how a friend's fingers were cut off by I.S. when they caught him smoking.

Downstairs, Earthquake told us about the entrance to a tunnel dug by Islamic State, but now covered over with furniture and debris, because two days after he took this building, I.S. emerged from the tunnel to mount a counterattack.

This man is wielding a sword taken from a dead I.S. fighter. The balaclava is to protect his identity, which not even his comrades know, because often he crosses the front line to pose as an Islamic State fighter and collect intelligence.

This is a YPG spying operation inside Raqqa last year. The bulb inside a motor bike headlight has been replaced by a camera. This an I.S. checkpoint. Here, I.S. fighters leave a mosque. The streets are largely deserted, however, because people want to avoid the man questioning the motorist. They are the religious police. They spread terror inside Raqqa, while others plan to inflict terror abroad.

For four years, Raqqa has cast a long shadow, stretching out over places like London, Manchester, Brussels and Nice. It's hard not to think of all the innocent victims of I.S., the victims of the hatred and the murderous instructions that emanated from right here.

An hour's drive outside the city, these are the latest residents of Raqqa to escape and join many others already at the refugee camp. But at least they are safe. As winter approaches, the biggest battle they will face is with the elements.

As for civilians deaths inside Raqqa, the coalition says it does all it can to avoid them and that, when they do happen, it's the fault of Islamic State for using human shields.