A discussion was started by a group of 35 activists who had remained in the city, which led to the creation of a rally named “The youth of Raqqa”. One of these activists, surgeon Ayman al-Khalaf, has explained to Syria Untold:
هذه النقاشات والحوارات التي كانت تجري في سهرات شباب الرقة، أنتجت فكرة تشكيل تجمع يحمل اسم "تجمع شباب الرقة الحر"