Syria’s Kurds look to Assad for protection
Trump announces new troop withdrawal
AKCAKALE, Turkey — Syria’s Kurds said Syrian government forces agreed Sunday to help them fend off Turkey’s invasion — a major shift in alliances that came after President Donald Trump ordered all U.S. troops withdrawn from the northern border area amid the rapidly deepening chaos.
The shift could lead to clashes between Turkey and Syria and raises the specter of a resurgent Islamic State terrorist group as the U.S. relinquishes any remaining influence in northern Syria to President Bashar Assad and his chief backer, Russia.
Adding to the turmoil Sunday, hundreds of IS families and supporters escaped from a holding camp in Syria amid the fighting between Turkish forces and the Kurds.
The fast-deteriorating situation was set in motion last week when Mr. Trump ordered U.S. troops in northern Syria to step aside, clearing the way for an attack by Turkey, which regards the Kurds as terrorists. Since 2014, the Kurds have fought alongside the U.S. in defeating IS in Syria, and Mr. Trump’s move was decried at home and abroad as a betrayal of an ally.
Over the past five days, Turkish troops and their allies have pushed
their way into northern towns and villages, clashing with the Kurdish fighters over a stretch of 125 miles. The offensive has displaced at least 130,000 people.
On Sunday, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said all American troops will withdraw from northern Syria because of the increasing danger of getting caught in the crossfire. He did not say how many would withdraw or where they would go but that they represent most of the 1,000 U.S. troops in Syria.
The peril to American forces was illustrated Friday when a small number of U.S. troops came under Turkish artillery fire at an observation post in the north. No Americans were hurt. Mr. Esper said it was unclear whether that was an accident.
Mr. Trump tweeted: “Very smart not to be involved in the intense fighting along the Turkish Border, for a change. Those that mistakenly got us into the Middle East Wars are still pushing to fight. They have no idea what a bad decision they have made.”
Later in the day Sunday, Kurdish officials announced they will work with the Syrian government to fend off the Turkish invasion, deploying side by side along the border. Syrian TV said government troops were moving to the north to confront the Turkish invasion but gave no details.
The Kurdish fighters had few options after the U.S. abandoned them, and it had been anticipated they would turn to Mr. Assad’s government for support.
A return by Mr. Assad’s forces to the region where Syrian Kurds have built up autonomy in the north would be a major shift in Syria’s long-running civil war, further cementing Mr. Assad’s hold over the ravaged country. Late Sunday, Syrian TV broadcast from the northern town of Hassakeh where residents took to the streets to celebrate the announcement of cooperation between the Syrian government and the Kurds, and many vowed to defeat the Turkish invasion.
It would also mean American troops no longer have a presence in an area where Russian- and Iranian-backed militias now have a role.
It was not clear what Russia’s role was in cementing the agreement. But Russian officials have been mediating low-level talks between the Kurds and Damascus. Syria is allied with Russia, and Turkey, though it is a NATO member, has drawn close to Moscow in recent years under Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The U.S. withdrawal leaves open the question of what happens to the Kurdish-run prisons and detention centers that hold thousands of IS prisoners, including more than 2,000 foreign militants.
The Kurdish-led administration in northern Syria said in a statement that 785 IS supporters escaped after attacking guards and storming the gates.
Meanwhile, Turkey said 440 Kurdish fighters have been killed since the operation began Wednesday. The SDF said 56 of its fighters have died. Turkey also said four of its soldiers were killed, along with 16 allied Syrian fighters.