US-backed militias trying to oust ISIL terrorists from the Syrian city of Manbij took "almost complete control" of the city on Saturday

US-backed militias trying to oust ISIL terrorists from the Syrian city of Manbij took "almost complete control" of the city on Saturday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), which includes the Kurdish YPG militia and Arab fighters, launched its campaign two months ago with the backing of US special forces to drive ISIL from a last stretch of the Syrian-Turkish frontier.

The official spokesman of the SDF-allied Manbij military council, Sharfan Darwish, told Reuters that battles were continuing but that around 90 percent of the city had now been cleared of ISIL.

Pockets of militants are still present in the center of the city, the Britain-based Observatory said.