File image.
The Turkish Military and its proxies are reportedly preparing to launch a new large-scale operation against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria.
Speaking following a cabinet meeting on May 23, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara will launch a new military operation in Syria in an effort to link up two areas already under Turkish control in the northern and northeastern regions of the country.
Erdogan said the operation would aim to resume Turkish efforts to create a 30km “safe zone” along its border with Syria.
“We will soon take new steps regarding the incomplete portions of the project we started on the 30km deep safe zone we established along our southern border,” Erdogan said.
Following Erdogan’s statement, the SDF said it that there had been no “strategic change” in northern and northeastern Syria, and that Turkey was trying to “undermine stability” in these regions. The group also revealed that it is exchanging information on Turkish threats with international guarantors, in a hint to the US and Russia.
The SDF is led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units, which Turkey views as an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
On May 24, Leaflets were dropped over SDF-held Minaq in the northern countryside of Aleppo, calling on civilians there to stay away from all military positions in the town. The leaflets said the Turkish decision to “cleanse” areas held by Kurdish forces is “irreversible”.
One of the leaflets allegedly dropped over Minaq by Turkish warplanes. Click to see full-size image. Via Twitter.
Minaq is expected to be one of the main targets of any upcoming operation against the SDF, along with the towns of Tell Rifaat and Manbij in the northern Aleppo countryside and the town of Kobane in the governorate’s northeastern countryside.
A fairly large force of the Syrian Arab Army and several units of the Russian Military Police are present near all of these towns.
Ankara could soon find itself in a new confrontation with Damascus, whose Foreign Ministry called the Turkish plans to establish a “safe zone” in the northern and northeastern regions a “colonial aggression” in a message sent to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on May 25.
The US, the main backer of the SDF, has also warned Turkey against launching a new military operation in northern and northeastern Syria.
Turkey is likely trying to take advantage of the Ukrainian conflict, which is keeping Russia busy and the US in need of all of its NATO allies, to further its agenda in Syria. A new operation against the SDF could also play in favor of Erdogan and his party, the Justice and Development, before the 2023 Turkish elections.
Believe me guys those kurdish are the azovs of Syria, Irak and Turkey.
While I have no love for the Kurds, the Turks are much more dangerous, they’ve been selling drones to Azovsis to help them kill Russians. Now Russia should take any opportunity it has to punish erdoganist invaders in Syria.
Ok redneck .
Not Kurdish please, I’m türk don’t mix kurdish and PKK. Kurds are people PKK is an armed organisation.
It’s like you said Ukrainians instead of Azov.
This is tricky for Assad. He either lets it happened and loses lots of soldiers, and ISIS gets stronger, or he attacks turkey and risks all of NATO funding Turkey to go to war with Syria, and Israel will join in.
Assad should use ballistic missiles to clear Turkish military, and Hezbollah and SAA do joint operations to clear the rest
We have not choice !
the PKK/YPG not the “Kurdish” forces in the Turkish army there are a lot of Kurds too. we are not fighting an ethnic group but an armed organization. in the PKK/YPG there are also Turks who are communists. for the Syrian branch they are volunteers from all over the world as we can see in Ukraine.
Our goal is not to invade Syria, it is to protect our border, the YPG in Syria is throwing missiles at us on the ground directly. the YPG prevents the Syrians from returning to their homes. Syrian refugees in Turkey are as afraid of the YPG as they are of Assad. the YPG did ethnic cleansing in the areas it controls, especially those who do not agree with the YPG ideology were expelled even Kurds. Among the 4 million Syrians in Turkey, 300,000 to 500,000 are Kurds.
And then the most important thing! Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran will not allow a second Israel to be created with the PKK/YPG.
“A new operation against the SDF could also play in favor of Erdogan and his party, the Justice and Development, before the 2023 Turkish elections. ” => It will not help Erdogan at all with nearly 100 % inflation, rock bottom economy and free fall Turkish lira. He will be out for good and it will be good for Turkey. By the way, please do not say “We”, you do represent only yourself.
it is like the chechens of Kadyrov versus the chechens of Basayev
Easy, ask assad to tell kurds give up their weapon and position to SAA/Russia. If they dont give SAA help to clean and shove kurds south to Iraq border away from turkey
You have only a choice, yes, choice for HUMANS’ SAKE! DIG ITSELF / ‘YOUR’ SELVES (“yours” second person of ‘IT’)!
Erdo, you can’t have erdonalds in Russia and a piece of Syria, you are crazy, man. Syria and Russia want all the syrian territory to Syria, and that’s irreversible. By the way, have you listen, shlomos? That’s also for you.
Another Putin unfinish business, now will cost more lives again and bite Russia and Putin again.
Joe, go outside see if your kids are being murdered.
Good riddance.My crystall ball shows me thousands of dead terrorists.
Erdogan is the opportunist hypocrite person. he is secret agent of Israeli Zionist. he just want to create problem like US and NATO doing . he is the biggest enemy of Muslim and islam like isil and alqaeda and al saud
Well said, absolutely right !
Its all about Turkish land grab, and political campaign of looser Erdogan.
Edrogan is just pissed he is not taken seriously again. His drones, he sold to Ukraine are a joke and he needs better PR, so he is trying it on his own. I doubt this will be anything serious. Probably a light exercise, over after 3 days. Turkey has big money problems. The devaluation of their currency is steady developing into a epic hyperinflation. He has no funds for his army. In fact he has a way too bigger army as he needs to. There may be some down-sizing on the table soon. At least he has no problems with gas these days :-) .. unlike some pretty suicidal EU members :-)
Turks und Kurds just hate each other cause they are still arguing over the territory they took from the armenians they murdered together.
turks and kurds took Armenian lands. But artificially created things will have artificial end as well. Countries like azerbaijan, turkey, etc. will disappear from the map. Even Israel in the end when real OWNER will return and will kick shaitan out. But Kurds deserve a bit more what have.
Shlomo, shlomo, change the narrative, Iran is pissing on your atomic bombs.
Shlomo, good luck.
I hope they kill lots of Kurdish terrorists.
They will kick kurds until the US agrees to a good price. Then they will take the price and move against assad.
So, you aren’t there, your basement is on another place.
And get siruan land? Stupid dummy! Syrian KURDS are Syrians. MERDolfgan BEASTS are NOT HUMANS!
Puah! SHITtila and SHITaktyar, all the MERDusoglu and MERDolfgan the same can call ITSELVES only “UNHUMAN GENOCIDALS”. NOTHING MORE THAN APPALING BEASTS, FACTS, ACTION AND HISTORY SHOW CLEARLY. BUT we have to thank THAT BEAST OD MERDolfgan: IT IS GOING TO HAVE ITS UNHUMAN GENOCIDALS DESTROYED BY USA, ROSSIJA AND ALL THE OTHER (HUMAN) PLAYERS TOGETHER! THANKS, SHITTOGAN!
Arabs and Kurds don’t deserve the historical Mesopotamian lands.(They’ve turned these places into shitty ghettos.) Neither of them are natives of these lands. Kurds are Iranian origin and Arabs came from Hijaz. Not only Syria also Iraq is the right of the Turks. Kirkuk and Mosul belongs to Turks, Nenovah is belongs to Assyrians. The lands with 500 years of Ottoman history cannot be given up with the will of the British and Jews. We will not allow the establishment of a second Israel. Sprit of Misak-ı Milli still lives in all Turkish people’s hearts. Although i have no love for the Russians but respect their campaign against the former tsarist and Orthodox lands. Russians should not interfere our historical claims too.
Erdogan banks on Russian inaction due to Russian difficulties in Ukraine, the threat of approving Nato membership to Nordic countries, and the fear of losing a country that refuses to cooperate with western sanctions. Nato is keen on fighting Russia with a fresh set of population in Idlib as well as its Isis mercs hiding in Syria or freed from prison. Russia may instead of totally being inert has a possibility of seeking a trade-off with some village to secure M5 as retaking Idlib is impossible right now. The opportunity to divert US weapons and funding to the Kurds is there. Israel will as always take the opportunity to hit the Syrian army in the back while it is engaged with Idlib or its facilities. Iran with its enlarged role in Syria wont be able to do much. Incidentally, a less hostile ruling group against Israel has been brought to power in Lebanon. Putin should have opted to this procedure and not his costly operation.
The yanks are funding and training them kurds in camps in Sweden and Finland. Turkey has tricky road being on both sides of the fence