Kurds begin evacuation of besieged border town in north Syria
Kurdish fighters and civilians began leaving a besieged Syrian town yesterday, the first pullback under the US-brokered ceasefire deal, opening the way for a broader withdrawal of Kurdish-led forces from parts of the Turkish border.
The evacuation is a boost to a ceasefire that has been on shaky ground since it began on Thursday evening.
Despite the truce, at least one Turkish soldier was killed yesterday in sporadic clashes with Kurdish fighters in north Syria, the Turkish defence ministry said.
The ministry said Syrian Kurdish fighters had broken the three-day ceasefire about 20 times. But Kurdish fighters accused Turkey of flouting the five-day pause by shelling civilian areas in the north-east and the border town of Ras Al Ain.
The Turkish ministry said its soldier was killed in an attack by anti-tank weapons and small arms fire, bringing Turkey’s military death toll to seven in its offensive. The ministry also said it allowed a 39-vehicle humanitarian convoy to enter Ras Al Ain, a border town where some of the heaviest fighting has taken place. It said the convoy helped to evacuate the area of wounded and others.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitor, said ambulances were transporting wounded civilians and fighters. Dozens of fighters in military attire left on pick-up vehicles, passing by checkpoints manned by Ankara-allied Syrian fighters.
Turkey aims to establish a safe zone about 32 kilometres into Syria. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday it would run for about 440km along the border, although the US special envoy for Syria said the accord covered a smaller area where Turkish forces and their Syrian rebel allies were fighting.
US Defence Secretary Mark Esper announced that under current plans all US troops leaving Syria will go to western Iraq and the US military will continue its operations against ISIS.
At least one Turkish soldier was killed yesterday amid sporadic clashes with Kurdish fighters in northern Syria even though a US-brokered truce remains in place.
Turkey’s defence ministry said that Syrian Kurdish fighters had breached the three-day-old ceasefire about 20 times. Yesterday’s attack brought Turkey’s military death toll to seven.
Ankara also said it allowed a 39-vehicle humanitarian convoy to enter Ras Al Ain, a border town that has been the scene of some of the heaviest fighting since Turkish forces moved into northern Syria.
Dozens of fighters left on pickup trucks, passing by checkpoints manned by Turkey-backed militia.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a war monitoring group with sources inside the country, said ambulances were taking wounded civilians and fighters.
There was no immediate confirmation of any full withdrawal by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces from the border town, which is surrounded by Turkish soldiers and their Syrian proxy groups.
The SDF confirmed on Sunday evening its withdrawal from the border town, which is surrounded by Turkish troops and their Syrian proxies.
A pro-Turkey commander said prior to the announcement the full withdrawal would “likely happen in waves” as there are “a large number” of SDF combatants still inside.
Turkey considers the Syrian Kurdish groups to be terrorists for their links to a decades-long Kurdish insurgency inside Turkey.
The soldier’s death yesterday came on the same day that Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Ankara and Moscow would discuss the removal of the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia from the northern towns of Manbij and Kobani during talks in Russia next week.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will travel to Sochi on Tuesday for emergency discussions on Syria with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
In an interview with Turkish broadcaster Kanal 7, Mr Cavusoglu said Ankara expected the YPG to be removed from areas of northern Syria being retaken by Damascus, which is backed by Moscow.
The Turkish foreign minister said Ankara did not want to see a single YPG fighter left in the “safe zone” at the end of the truce.
On Friday, Kurdish forces accused Turkey of breaking the five-day pause by shelling civilian areas in the north-east.
A senior Turkish official dismissed the accusations, saying they were an attempt to sabotage the agreement struck by Ankara and Washington.
On Saturday, Mr Erdogan said that the offensive would continue and Turkey would “crush the heads of terrorists” if the deal was not fully implemented. Ankara has insisted that it is the duty of Washington to ensure the withdrawal of the YPG.
Turkey’s defence ministry said late on Saturday that it was closely monitoring the withdrawal of the YPG and that it was in close contact with US officials about the issue and to provide logistical information.
Turkey wants to establish what it calls a safe zone about 32 kilometres into Syria from its southern border. Mr Erdogan said on Friday that this zone would run for about 440km along the frontier, although the US special envoy for Syria said the accord covered a smaller area where Turkish forces and their Syrian allies were fighting.
Mr Erdogan also said on Friday that Turkey would set up a dozen observation posts across north-east Syria.
Another question is what the arrangement will be along the rest of the north-eastern border, from the Euphrates River to the Iraqi border, most of which remains solely in the hands of Kurdish-led fighters.
US troops were once positioned in much of that area, but President Donald Trump abruptly removed them last week, opening the way for the Turkish invasion.
Abandoned by their allies, the Kurds then turned to Russia and secured an agreement last week for Syrian government forces to move into the north-eastern region.
So far, the Syrian forces have only entered one location directly on the border – the town of Kobani – and a few positions further south.
Ankara considers the Syrian Kurdish groups to be terrorists over their links to an insurgency in Turkey