Turkey seizes 18 Syrian soldiers

Ankara hands over captives in Russian-mediated operation

ISTANBUL — Turkish military forces captured 18 Syrian government soldiers in northeastern Syria, Turkey’s defense minister said Thursday, in one example of an increasingly muddled battleground after the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the area.

Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said the soldiers were captured during Turkish reconnaissance operations southeast of Ras al-Ayn but didn’t say when. Ankara then entered into talks with Russia to hand over the Syrian soldiers, he added.

Turkey agreed to a ceasefire brokered by Russia in which Kurdish fighters would withdraw 19 miles away from the Turkish border. As part of the deal, Syrian government forces would take positions along the frontier.

Akar spoke during a visit to Turkish troops at the border with Syria. His comments were carried on the official ministry website.

A Syrian Kurdish official said the soldiers were captured Tuesday during an intense battle between Syrian government forces and Turkey-backed fighters. Kurdish fighters were fighting alongside the Syrian troops. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief reporters.

Late Thursday, Russia Today TV reported that Turkey handed over the 18 soldiers in an operation mediated by Moscow. The station showed a video of Syrian soldiers, most of them in uniform, boarding what appeared to be a Russian helicopter. A couple of the soldiers were in civilian clothes and seemed injured. No more details were available of the hand-over.

In a wide-ranging interview late Thursday, Syrian President Bashar Assad described the Russian-Turkish deal as “good” and a temporary arrangement. He said with the deal Moscow has managed to rein in Turkish aspirations to seize more Syrian lands and outmaneuvered Washington. The deal also prevented the arrival of international forces in Syria’s northeast.

“It does not achieve everything, in the sense that it will not pressure the Turks to leave immediately,” Assad said. “However, it limits the damage and paves the way for the liberation of this region in the future, or the immediate future, as we hope.”

In another sign of the changing battleground, U.S. forces said the first batch of mechanized armored vehicles arrived Thursday in southeast Syria, where they are to take part in securing oil fields and fighting remnants of the Islamic State group. U.S.-led coalition spokesman Col. Myles Caggins said the first batch of Bradley armored infantry carriers arrived in Deir el-Zour province and will provide infantry with maneuverability and firepower. He said the deployment is “de-conflicted” with other forces operating in the region.