TURKISH AND ALLIED REBEL FORCES ENCIRCLE KURDS IN AFRIN
Fears for civilians as the last route leading out of the city is heavily shelled, but rebels consider escape corridor
Turkey’s army and allied rebels yesterday said they had surrounded the Kurdish city of Afrin in northern Syria, sparking fear of another siege in the country.
While attention in recent weeks has focused on a regime assault on rebel-held Eastern Ghouta, in Syria’s north Turkish forces and allied rebels have been advancing in their offensive against the Kurdish enclave.
The Turkish military said it had completely encircled Afrin city, home to about 350,000 people and defended by a Syrian Kurdish militia, the People’s Protection Units (YPG).
Birusk Hasakeh, a YPG spokesman in Afrin, denied that the city had been besieged but said the last route leading out of it was being shelled heavily.
“If they do encircle the city, we will be ready for a long fight. We will resist,” Mr Hasakeh said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Turkish forces had moved to within firing range of that last access route, which leads to a pair of regime-held towns – essentially encircling Afrin and 90 villages to its west.
Sealing off Afrin city would be a key step in ousting the YPG, a vital partner for a United States-backed coalition against ISIL, but seen by Ankara as terrorists.
It remains unclear what Turkey’s next move will be, but it may lay siege to Afrin while allowing civilians to leave to avoid high casualties offensive.
The Britain-based Observatory said Ankara was seeking to push civilians into either rebel-held or Syrian regime territory to allow for a “speedy military operation”.
Abu Jaafar, a commander in the pro-Ankara forces waging Operation Olive Branch, said rebels were considering leaving an exit route for civilians.
“We will allow civilians to leave so they will not be hurt in case [Kurdish] fighters hold out in the villages, neighbourhoods, or buildings in Afrin,” he said.
Hundreds of civilians were seen fleeing Afrin on Monday, heading to regime-held areas farther east, with vehicles piled high with belongings.
On Monday the US said it was ready to act in Syria if needed.
US Ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, told the Security Council a ceasefire approved two weeks ago had failed and she circulated a draft resolution calling for a 30-day truce in the rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta near Damascus.
“This is no ceasefire. This is the Assad regime, Iran and Russia continuing to wage war against their political opponents,” Ms Haley said.
She recalled that US President Donald Trump had ordered missile strikes on a Syrian air base in April last year in retaliation for a sarin gas attack blamed on Syrian President Bashar Al Assad’s forces.
“We also warn any nation that is determined to impose its will through chemical attacks and inhuman suffering, most especially the outlaw Syrian regime: the US remains prepared to act if we must,” she said.
“It is not the path we prefer, but it is a path we have demonstrated we will take, and we are prepared to take again. When the international community consistently fails to act, there are times when states are compelled to take their own action.”
The US-drafted text, seen by AFP, would decide on a 30-day cessation of hostilities throughout Eastern Ghouta and Damascus city to start immediately upon adoption.
The draft resolution would allow “safe, unimpeded and sustained access” for humanitarian aid convoys and “safe, unconditional, medical evacuations in Eastern Ghouta”.
A Syrian opposition representative told the council at a separate meeting that military action was a feasible option to stop the violence and to force the Syrian government to the negotiating table.
Hadi Al Bahra, of the Syrian Negotiation Commission, said “the threat, and if necessary, use of limited military action” was needed to deter breaches of the ceasefire.
On Monday, Syrian forces pounded two rebel towns in Eastern Ghouta, pressing on with a Russia-backed offensive that has so far allowed government fighters to retake up to 60 per cent of the enclave.
At least 1,162 civilians have been killed, including 241 children in the nearly month-long offensive, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which on Sunday put the death toll for the seven-year conflict at 511,000.
More than 1,000 people, including many children, are in urgent need of evacuation in Ghouta, according to the UN.
In the Zamalka neighbourhood, an air strike killed a member of the area’s civil defence unit, the White Helmets. Rifaat Idris was the fifth civil defence volunteer killed by strikes in Eastern Ghouta in the past week.
“People are still cramming in basements under the ground. We spend most of the time in these basements,” said Mr Al Maamri, who lives in Zamalka.
“The morale of the people is almost collapsed. Our steadfastness depends only on our belief in the divine providence,” he said.
But Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said “the government of Syria has every right to try to remove the threat to the safety of its citizens”.
“The suburbs of Damascus cannot remain a hotbed of terrorism,” he said.
“There is a possibility for more resistance, there could be some negotiations, but not for surrender or expulsion. We are not against negotiations, but we are against expulsion and handing over our areas to Iran,” said Yusef Al Bustani, a journalist in Eastern Ghouta.
“Our situation today is bad, hard and very tiring. We consider our steadfastness and resistance a real miracle,” Mr Bustani said. “Even though we are very tired, our homes are gone and we lost most of what we own, we are still resisting.”
This is no ceasefire. This is the Assad regime, Iran and Russia continuing to wage war against their political opponents NIKKI HALEY US Ambassador to the UN