U.S. begins arming Syrian Kurds for final assault on Raqqa

Equipment distribution will be limited

WASHINGTON — The United States has started arming Syrian Kurds with heavy machine guns, antitank weapons and other arms, a critical step in preparing a pivotal part of the force that will carry out the final assault on the Islamic State group’s de facto capital of Raqqa, Pentagon officials said.

The weapons deliveries follow the Trump administration’s decision earlier in May to arm the Americanbacked Kurdish militias over the objections of Turkey, an important NATO ally that considers the Kurdish fighters to be terrorists.

“The U.S.-led coalition has begun issuing arms and equipment to Kurdish elements of the SDF,” Col. Ryan Dillon, a military spokesman in Baghdad, said in an email on Tuesday, using the abbreviation for the Syrian Democratic Forces, a combination of mostly Syrian Kurdish and Arab militias.

Col. Dillon said the equipment provided included “small arms, ammunition, heavy machine guns” and antitank weapons to use against “heavily armored vehicle-borne IEDs,” or improvised explosive devices. NBC News first reported that the arms shipments had begun.

American military commanders have long argued that arming the People’s Protection Units, or YPG, a Kurdish militia fighting alongside Syrian Arab forces against the Islamic State, is the fastest way to seize Raqqa.

But Turkey has strongly objected to such a move, raising fears of a backlash that could prompt the Turks to curtail their cooperation with Washington in the struggle against IS. Turkish officials have issued veiled threats that they would shut down allied operations at Incirlik Air Base, the major air hub for American and allied warplanes in the battle.

Turkey’s National Security Council said on Wednesday that the Trump administration’s decision to arm the Kurdish militia in Syria was “not befitting of an alliance.”

Equipment provided to the Kurds, which is being drawn from stockpiles in the region, will be limited in quantity and by mission, and will be doled out incrementally as objectives are reached, Col. Dillon said.

As the fighting against IS extremists is underway, Syrian troops clashed with U.S.backed rebels in the country’s south on Wednesday, according to activists.

The fighting came days after the United States told Syrian government forces and their allies to move away from an area near the Jordanian border.