Turkish soldier killed in northern Syria offensive, Kurdish militia blamed
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Turkish tank on the Syrian border. Photo: AP
KARKAMIS, Turkey,— Turkey on Saturday said the military suffered its first fatality in an unprecedented four day campaign inside Syrian Kurdistan (northern Syria), blaming Kurdish militia in an increasingly combustible contest for control in the border region.
The Turkish army on Wednesday [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] the two-pronged cross border offensive against Islamic State (IS) jihadists but also Syrian Kurdish militia detested by Ankara, sending in dozens of tanks and hundreds of troops.
Observers and analysts say Turkey is using the IS as a [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] to undermine Kurds in Syrian Kurdistan.
Tensions between Ankara and the Kurdish militia flared Saturday, with clashes taking place eight kilometres (five miles) south of the town of Jarabulus, the border town recaptured from IS this week by Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a monitoring group and Kurdish sources said.
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency later said one Turkish soldier was killed and three more wounded in a rocket attack by Kurdish militia on two tanks taking part in the offensive.
The dead soldier — who has not been identified — was the first confirmed Turkish fatality of Turkey’s unprecedented operation in Syrian Kurdistan which has so far proceeded with lightning pace.
The toll was confirmed by a Turkish official, without giving further details.
The rocket fire came from members of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), Anadolu said. Turkey considers the PYD and its People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia to be terror organisations.
Anadolu said that the Turkish army responded to the rocket attack by shelling PYD targets in Syria, without giving further details.
The self-proclaimed Kurdish authorities in Syrian Kurdistan said in a statement that the local fighters backed by Kurdish forces “destroyed two tanks and killed its crews” near the village of Al-Amarneh.
Turkey which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds fears the creation of an autonomous Kurdish region in Syrian Kurdistan — similar to the Kurdish region in northern Iraq — would spur the separatist ambitions of Turkey’s own Kurds who make up around [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] of the country’s 78-million population.
Syrian Kurds have [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] three autonomous zones, or Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan (northern Syria) in 2013. On March 17, 2016 Syria’s Kurds [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] a federal region in Syrian Kurdistan.
Washington regards the Kurdish YPG as key ally against Islamic State and the most effective fighting force against IS in Syria and has provided them with air support as well as the military advisers. The Kurdish militia has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State.
In a separate incident Saturday, Kurdish militants fired four rockets at the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in the main Kurdish city of Diyarbakir in Turkish Kurdistan, without causing casualties, the Dogan news agency said.
‘New regional conflict’
The pro-Kurdish fighters said earlier Turkey had for the first time carried out [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] on its positions.
“With this aggression, a new conflict period will begin in the region,” said the Jarabulus Military Council which is linked to the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Anadolu agency reported that the army had carried out strikes against a weapons arsenal and command post belonging to “terror groups”.
The fighting indicates Turkey is entering into a new and more dangerous phase in Syria four days into operation “Euphrates Shield”.
On Saturday, an AFP correspondent at the Turkish border village of Karkamis saw six more tanks crossing into Syria, adding to the dozens of tanks and hundreds of troops already in the country.
Anadolu said pro-Ankara fighters — backed by Turkish troops and firepower — had now taken five more villages from IS after the capture of Jarabulus.
Turkey fiercely opposes moves by the YPG — which it regards as the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) — to expand into territory lost by IS.
Its campaign against the Kurdish fighters puts it at odds with NATO ally the US, which supports the YPG as an effective fighting force against IS.
Ankara says that the YPG has failed to stick to a promise to return across the Euphrates river after advancing west this month despite guarantees given by US Vice President Joe [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] on a visit to Ankara on Wednesday.
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Posted on [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] by [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
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Turkish tank on the Syrian border. Photo: AP
KARKAMIS, Turkey,— Turkey on Saturday said the military suffered its first fatality in an unprecedented four day campaign inside Syrian Kurdistan (northern Syria), blaming Kurdish militia in an increasingly combustible contest for control in the border region.
The Turkish army on Wednesday [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] the two-pronged cross border offensive against Islamic State (IS) jihadists but also Syrian Kurdish militia detested by Ankara, sending in dozens of tanks and hundreds of troops.
Observers and analysts say Turkey is using the IS as a [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] to undermine Kurds in Syrian Kurdistan.
Tensions between Ankara and the Kurdish militia flared Saturday, with clashes taking place eight kilometres (five miles) south of the town of Jarabulus, the border town recaptured from IS this week by Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, a monitoring group and Kurdish sources said.
Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency later said one Turkish soldier was killed and three more wounded in a rocket attack by Kurdish militia on two tanks taking part in the offensive.
The dead soldier — who has not been identified — was the first confirmed Turkish fatality of Turkey’s unprecedented operation in Syrian Kurdistan which has so far proceeded with lightning pace.
The toll was confirmed by a Turkish official, without giving further details.
The rocket fire came from members of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD), Anadolu said. Turkey considers the PYD and its People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia to be terror organisations.
Anadolu said that the Turkish army responded to the rocket attack by shelling PYD targets in Syria, without giving further details.
The self-proclaimed Kurdish authorities in Syrian Kurdistan said in a statement that the local fighters backed by Kurdish forces “destroyed two tanks and killed its crews” near the village of Al-Amarneh.
Turkey which still denies the constitutional existence of Kurds fears the creation of an autonomous Kurdish region in Syrian Kurdistan — similar to the Kurdish region in northern Iraq — would spur the separatist ambitions of Turkey’s own Kurds who make up around [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] of the country’s 78-million population.
Syrian Kurds have [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] three autonomous zones, or Cantons of Jazeera, Kobani and Afrin and a Kurdish government across Syrian Kurdistan (northern Syria) in 2013. On March 17, 2016 Syria’s Kurds [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] a federal region in Syrian Kurdistan.
Washington regards the Kurdish YPG as key ally against Islamic State and the most effective fighting force against IS in Syria and has provided them with air support as well as the military advisers. The Kurdish militia has seized swathes of Syria from Islamic State.
In a separate incident Saturday, Kurdish militants fired four rockets at the [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] in the main Kurdish city of Diyarbakir in Turkish Kurdistan, without causing casualties, the Dogan news agency said.
‘New regional conflict’
The pro-Kurdish fighters said earlier Turkey had for the first time carried out [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] on its positions.
“With this aggression, a new conflict period will begin in the region,” said the Jarabulus Military Council which is linked to the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
Anadolu agency reported that the army had carried out strikes against a weapons arsenal and command post belonging to “terror groups”.
The fighting indicates Turkey is entering into a new and more dangerous phase in Syria four days into operation “Euphrates Shield”.
On Saturday, an AFP correspondent at the Turkish border village of Karkamis saw six more tanks crossing into Syria, adding to the dozens of tanks and hundreds of troops already in the country.
Anadolu said pro-Ankara fighters — backed by Turkish troops and firepower — had now taken five more villages from IS after the capture of Jarabulus.
Turkey fiercely opposes moves by the YPG — which it regards as the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) — to expand into territory lost by IS.
Its campaign against the Kurdish fighters puts it at odds with NATO ally the US, which supports the YPG as an effective fighting force against IS.
Ankara says that the YPG has failed to stick to a promise to return across the Euphrates river after advancing west this month despite guarantees given by US Vice President Joe [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] on a visit to Ankara on Wednesday.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
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