Turkish operation in Syria kills 11 Kurds: Turkey accused illegal occupation

Damascus/Washington – A tripartite meeting about Syria is scheduled next week between Russia, Turkey, and Iran. But before that, Turkey has deployed additional military and launched attacks in the Kurdish dominated areas of Syria. Turkey claims that 11 Kurds were killed in the attacks. Syria has objected to the Turkish military deployment and issued a stern warning to Turkey to immediately give up its illegal occupation and withdraw its military deployments. Reports suggest Russia targeting terrorist locations affiliated with Turkey in Syria.

A few weeks ago, President Bashar al-Assad’s party claimed a landslide victory in the Syrian elections. Since then, Russia and Iran have been working to restore order in Syria. For this, a tripartite meeting initiated by Russia will be held in the next week. The conference will include Russia, Iran, and Turkey. Major issues such as the ceasefire in Syria and the resettlement of refugees in Syria will be discussed.

Russia is expected to take an aggressive stance and possibly propose actions against anti-Assad groups. Iran, a supporter of Assad, is expected to back Russia’s proposal. However, Turkey fears the Russian action would lead to a refugee influx in Turkey.

Turkey conducted military operations in northern Syria against the Kurds for conspiring against Turkey. The Turkish Defence Ministry confirmed that 11 Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) rebels were killed on Thursday. Turkey said that the action was taken as the Kurdish rebels were preparing to infiltrate Turkish borders. Turkey has already declared Kurdish YPG and PKK as terrorist organizations. Using this situation, Turkey has added their military deployments in Syria.

However, Turkey’s contention is not acceptable to Syria. Syrian Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad has accused Turkey of infiltrating the northern part of the country with its military and taking illegal possession of the region. Mekdad blamed the Turkish incursion for the conflict in Idlib. The Syrian Foreign Minister has demanded that Turkey withdraw from Syria immediately and appealed to the international community to support Syrian efforts on this front while speaking to a Russian news agency.

Russia, meanwhile, has reportedly launched military actions and airstrikes in the Idlib region. Last week, Syrian President Assad visited Russia and met President Vladimir Putin. Since then, Russia has increased their attacks on Turkey-backed rebels in Idlib. Turkey appears to have deployed additional troops in northern Syria to counter the Russian action.