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Syrian Fighters Enter Afrin; Turkey Retaliates With Immediate Bombing Sending Turkish Lira, Stocks Tumbling

February 20, 2018

Syrian Fighters Enter Afrin; Turkey Retaliates With Immediate Bombing Sending Turkish Lira, Stocks Tumbling

As we reported yesterday, in a surprising twist in the ongoing Syrian proxy war, YPG Kurdish fighters in north-western Syria – who are backed by the US – had struck a deal with the Russia-backed Assad regime for Syrian forces to enter the Afrin region and repel a Turkish offensive which began last month.

Badran Jia Kurd, an advisor to the Kurdish-led administration in northern Syria told Reuters that Syrian troops will deploy along several border positions and could enter the region within the next two days: “we can cooperate with any side that lends us a helping hand in light of the barbaric crimes and the international silence,” Jia Kurd said.

We didn’t have long to wait for this escalation to unfold, and moments ago a convoy of fighters waving Syrian flags entered the northern Kurdish-held region of Afrin, which Turkey is targeting in a cross-border operation, according to footage on Syrian state TV shows.

BBC Monitoring
✔@BBCMonitoring

BREAKING: Pro-Syrian government forces have begun entering in northern Syria, state TV reports. pic.twitter.com/ya1XixC15o

BBC Monitoring
✔@BBCMonitoring

UPDATE: Footage of troops in now airing on state TV. pic.twitter.com/zJfrjhIK68

View image on Twitter

The pro-government fighters were filmed entering the village of Nubul in some 20 pickup trucks.  As Bloomberg adds, Rami Abdurrahman, head of the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war through activists on the ground, also confirmed the movement.

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Turkish Tanks Cross Into Syria As Ground Offensive Against US-Backed Militia Begins

January 21, 2018

Turkish Tanks Cross Into Syria As Ground Offensive Against US-Backed Militia Begins

Early on Sunday, Turkish ground forces crossed the border and pushed into northern Syria’s Afrin province on Sunday, Ankara said after launching artillery and air strikes on a U.S.-backed Kurdish militia it aims to sweep from its border.

Turkey sent armored divisions into northwest Syria after a day of airstrikes as part of ‘Operation Olive Branch’ which bombed Kurdish YPG forces (“People’s Protection Units”) in and around Afrin to drive the US-allied Kurdish militia from the area. Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army fighters along with Turkish troops are now moving into the area, according to state-run Anadolu news agency.

✔@jenanmoussa

1/ The ground offensive against Afrin enclave has indeed started. Clashes now inside Afrin province. Kurdish YPG claims it destroyed at least 1 Turkish tank. See video.

“Our jets took off and started bombing. And now, the ground operation is underway. Now we see how the YPG … are fleeing in Afrin,” President Tayyip Erdogan said. “We will chase them. God willing, we will complete this operation very quickly.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Turkish Warplanes Begin “Massive Bombing” Of US-Backed Syrian Kurds

January 20, 2018

Turkish Warplanes Begin “Massive Bombing” Of US-Backed Syrian Kurds

In a sharp escalation of Turkey’s military campaign against the US-backed Syrian Kurdish YPG, on Saturday Turkish warplanes fired missiles and launched “massive bombing” of Kurdish targets in Syria’s Afrin, NTV television reported.

Gissur Simonarson
✔@GissiSim
Airstrike after airstrike pounding Afrin right now. Massive shock and awe campaign underway.
Big question is if Turkey can follow up with a competent ground campaign.

Mutlu Civiroglu
✔@mutludc

Moment where Turkish jets strike Aftin city center

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

Russian Military Pulls Out Of Syrian Kurdish Town As Turkey Initiates “Massive Cross-Border Attack”

January 19, 2018

Russian Military Pulls Out Of Syrian Kurdish Town As Turkey Initiates “Massive Cross-Border Attack”

Turkey’s defense minister has confirmed the Turkish military has begun cross-border shelling of the Syrian Kurdish enclave of Afrin in what he further describes as the “de facto start” of the operation in order to destroy – in President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s words – Kurdish “terror nests” – and which has been dubbed previously by Turkey as a ‘massive cross-border attack.’

Defense Minister Nuettin Canikli said Friday that Ankara “has no option” regarding the planned invasion of Northern Syria to dislodge the YPG (Kurdish “People’s Protection Units”) and other factions, which it considers an extension of the “terrorist” PKK. Kurdish YPG militias and their media arms began reporting sporadic shelling and clashes earlier this week.

Crucially, the Turkish state-run news agency Anadoul confirmed that Russian military personnel have started pulling out of Afrin ahead of Turkey’s “expected” and imminent cross-border military operation. Russia has administered ‘deconfliction’ zones in the Afrin area while controlling airspace overhead, and has sponsored trilateral talks with Turkey and Iran which seeks cooperation among the three powers to wind down the war in Syria. The Russian military has long had “military advisors” on the ground in Afrin, which have in the past helped coordinate the fight against ISIS. 


Image via AFP

As we explained previously, the question of whether or not the large-scale Turkish assault on the Syrian Kurds moves forward or not depends in large part on Russia. On Thursday Turkey signaled that it had Russia cooperation in its planned invasion, though this was not confirmed by Moscow. As Reuters reported, “Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also told broadcaster CNN Turk that Turkey will coordinate with Russia and Iran on an air operation in Afrin.”

…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…

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