The long-awaited offensive by U.S.-backed Syrian forces to liberate the self-proclaimed Islamic State capital of Raqqa, Syria, will begin in days, Pentagon officials told the Washington Examiner Thursday.

“The shit is about to go down in Raqqa,” one official said, speaking under condition of anonymity. “I would expect to see the assault begin in the coming days.”

While the Pentagon is not saying publicly when the offensive will kick off, it has acknowledged that all the forces are in place, small arms are being handed out to the Syrian Democratic Forces, and civilians have been told to get out of Raqqa so they are not caught in the crossfire.

“The SDF is poised around Raqqa. They are within 3 kilometers [1.8 miles] from the north and the east, and are about 10 kilometers [6 miles] from the city to the west,” said Col. Ryan Dillon, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad.