Turkish operation in Syria
Ankara begins offensive despite mixed US signals
AKCAKALE (AFP) — Turkey said Tuesday it was ready for an offensive into northern Syria, while President Donald Trump insisted the United States had not abandoned its Kurdish allies by pulling forces out of the area, Istanbul sent more armored vehicles to the border with Syria on Tuesday, an AFP correspondent said. Dozens of vehicles made up a large convoy seen in the Turkish town of Akcakale in Sanliurfa province.
Meanwhile, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said Turkish forces were attacking near the border.
“The Turkish military is shelling one of our points on #SereKaniye Border with Turkey. “the SDF said in a tweet late Tuesday, referencing the key border town of Ras al-Ain.
It was one of the places from which U.S. troops withdrew from on Monday, according to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
“There were no injuries to our forces. We didn’t respond to this unprovoked attack. We are prepared to defend the people and the people of NE #Syria,” the SDF said.
Border skirmishes between Turkish and Kurdish forces have taken place before, and there was no indication the latest reported shelling was part of a broader offensive.
Trump has blown hot and cold since a surprise announcement on Sunday that Washington was pulling back 50 to 100 “special operators” from Syria’s northern frontier.
The troops had served as a buffer preventing a longplanned attack by the Turkish military against Kurdish forces, who were crucial in the years-long campaign to defeat the Islamic State group but are viewed as “terrorists” by Ankara.
After appearing to give a green light to the Turkish invasion on Sunday, he later threatened to “obliterate” Turkey’s economy if it went too far.
But he also gave a warm account of Turkey in other tweets and announced that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan would visit Washington on Nov. 13.
“So many people conveniently forget that Turkey is a big trading partner of the United States,” he said.
Ankara had already brushed aside Trump’s warnings, with Vice-President Fuat Oktay saying: “Turkey is not a country that will act according to threats.”
Turkey has always pushed hard against U.S. support for Kurdish forces in Syria due to their links with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) which has fought a bloody insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984.
Its defense ministry tweeted that preparations for an offensive in northern Syria have been “completed.”
Meanwhile, the Syrian government has welcomed the upheaval, spying an opportunity to bring the country’s Kurds back into its fold.
The Kurds have been “tossed aside” by Washington, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad told the pro-government Al-Watan newspaper.
Trump rejected that interpretation, tweeting: “We may be in the process of leaving Syria, but in no way have we Abandoned the Kurds, who are special people and wonderful fighters.”