Turkish infantry enters Syria to fight militias
Turkish ground forces crossed the Syrian border into the city of Afrin to attack the Kurdish YPG militia.
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Türkiye fired artillery across the Syrian border on January 21. Photo:AFP. |
At a press conference in Istanbul today, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Turkish forcesat 8:05 GMT (15:05 Hanoi time)advancing from the village of Gulbaba in the country into Afrin, an area controlled by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in Syria.
He added that Türkiye plans to establish a "30-kilometer safe zone" in Afrin. News agencyAnadolu reported that the Turkish forces included armored vehicles, special forces and infantry regiments. They advanced 5 km inside Afrin.
The YPG confirmed the move, saying two villages in Afrin's Bilbil district near the Turkish border had been attacked.
The US recently announced plans to establish a border security force of up to 30,000 troops in the Syrian border area with Türkiye, with the YPG as the core. Türkiye believes that the YPG is an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), an organization Ankara considers a terrorist organization. Türkiye has sent airstrikes and artillery fire at the YPG inwelcome the move to send troops across the Syrian border today.
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Location of Afrin. Graphics:ICG. |
