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The United States believes that Turkey and its proxies in Syria are preparing for a large-scale ground operation in territory controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Wall Street Journal reported on December 17, citing American officials.
The unnamed officials noted a significant Turkish military buildup near Kobani, Kurdish majority town and a stronghold of the SDF in the eastern Aleppo countryside.
The buildup resembled Turkish movements seen ahead of its 2019 invasion of northeast Syria, according to the officials. One of them told the WSJ that “a cross-border operation could be imminent.
The officials also emphasized that a new Turkish ground operation would deepen instability in the region and undermine efforts to maintain security against ISIS remnants.
WSJ report detailed the deployment of Turkish uniformed commandos, artillery units, and allied militias to strategic positions along the border.
As the Assad regime was collapsing, Turkey and its proxies in Syria launched a series of attacks against the SDF. The group was expelled from a large pocket in the northern Aleppo countryside centered around the town of Tell Rifaat. The key town of Manbij in the eastern Aleppo countryside also fell into the hands of Turkish forces, bringing them to the front with Kobani.
In response to the escalating situation, Ilham Ahmed, a senior official in the SDF’s civilian administration in Syria, penned a letter to President-elect Donald Trump, urging him to pressure Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to abandon the planned operation.
Ahmed’s letter, obtained by the WSJ, stated that Turkey aimed to seize control of Kurdish territory before Trump’s inauguration, thereby forcing the new administration to recognize Ankara’s authority in the region.
“If Turkey proceeds with its invasion, the consequences will be catastrophic,” Ahmed’s letter was cited as saying, noting that such an operation could displace more than 200,000 Kurdish civilians and threaten Christian communities in the area.
The U.S. has already made efforts to to prevent Turkey from attacking Kobani, temporarily deploying troops near the town and brokering a ceasefire in recent days. However, the Turkish military does not appear to be respecting the truce.
On December 18, the media center of the SDF reported multiple violations by the Turkish military and its proxies near Kobani.
“Despite the de-escalation efforts by the U.S., the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries continued their attacks yesterday and today on several areas around Kobani, Tishrin Dam, and Ain Issa.
Yesterday evening at 6:00 PM, Turkish mercenaries attacked the Tishrin Dam area from three axes, supported by drone cover from the occupation forces. The Manbij Military Council fighters confronted them, killing and wounding several of their fighters, forcing them to flee. The occupation’s drones targeted the area eight times.
In the Qereqozaqê Bridge area and the village of Bir Hiso south of Kobani, Turkish occupation drones carried out three airstrikes at 11:00 PM. Additionally, the Turkish occupation intensified its shelling of the area with dozens of rocket and artillery strikes.
In Ain Issa, Turkish drones targeted a car in the village of Hoshna yesterday evening and shelled the eastern villages of Ain Issa and the western areas of Tal Abyad with dozens of mortars and artillery shells.
This morning, mercenary groups, with Turkish air and ground support, launched a comprehensive attack from several axes on the Tishrin Dam area. Intense clashes are ongoing between the Manbij Military Council forces and the mercenaries, with heavy drone activity from the occupation forces,” the group said in a statement.
“In response to this, and due to the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries’ failure to adhere to the ceasefire, as well as the heavy shelling from drones and artillery, our forces shot down a Turkish “Bayraktar TB2” drone yesterday evening near the Qereqozaqê Bridge.
Our forces are now taking defensive positions to resist the attacks and defend all areas of North and East Syria, especially Kobani.
The Turkish occupation and its mercenaries are trying to exploit the ceasefire to continue their attacks and colonial plans, deceiving public opinion. It is no longer hidden that they are arrogantly seeking to occupy the region and displace its people,” it added.
Cornered by Turkey after the fall of the Assad regime -which guaranteed the safety of Kobani and other areas in northeastern Syria with help from Russia for years-, the SDF appears to be willing to receive help from any side.
Some in Israel are already calling to support Kurdish focus in Syria. Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats – a merger of Meretz and the Labor Party – said on December 18 that Syria ran the risk of Turkey and Sunni Islamists replacing Iran and Shia Islamists as a threat to Israel.
“Israel must be concerned about one basic thing: a Turkish attack against the Kurds in Syria,” he wrote on the X social site.
“Israel must take the initiative and take advantage of overt and covert channels to support the Kurds. A strong Kurdish territory is security for Israel,” he added.
It is still unclear if the SDF is willing to receive support from Israel, or what shape such a support would take considering all the geographic, military and political limitations playing in favor of Turkey, a close ally of the U.S. and a key member of NATO.
Turkey has already condemned Israel’s invasion into southern Syria and its strikes against the country’s military assets which began after the fall of the Assad regime. However, the two sides will not likely clash at any point. In fact, some observers in the Middle East believe that the two have been coordinating to split the war-torn country between them.
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israele ai turchia gli farà mangiare gli scarponi a spezzatino. saluti
the usa in the eyes of turkey is just an extension of the british serpents who screwed the ottomans with the sykes picot. the kurds messed up again by going against assad, they should have worked with him. at least under assad, the kurds would retain some autonomy. the only positive thing we can hope is for turkey to seize the oil fields in al omar and conoco away from the americans and kurds and use the proceeds for syrian recovery
the united states and turkey ( both nato countries) and its proxies in syria are preparing for a large-scale ground operation in territory controlled by the syrian democratic forces (sdf). nato is to control northern syria, but turkey has a more sophisticated plan for the region..!
sophistication and erdogan are oxymoron.
yes he is with a big mouth and idioy mhp coalition partner they love to draw nonsense maps were turkey annexes islands from greece erases armenia of the map and ottoman middle east. they are delussional. it wont happen and their partner israel wont let it happen they will use the kurds to destroy turkey from within.
erdogan better just destroy the sdf and supply fortify syrias new government so israel is forced to hold back at the golan. force them back to the 1974 line
kurds are natural allies of both us and israel. erdogan would be complete idiotic moron, if he made a peace treaty with them.
israel wants syria to be a failed state with us bases in kurdish areas with all the oil wealth. another poor state in continuous civil war with hezbollah and iraqi militias fighting local sunnis and burning the entire country and lebanon and iraq down.
no. kurds are only allied to usa out of necessity and they distrust each other a lot. most kurds (apoists) hate hate hate israel, best friend of erdogan the snake.
lies: erdogan is 200% a servant of the usa (and israel). the only hope now in syria are sdf and plpf (reported to be fighting against hts, not all syria is occupied by erdogan’s fascists).
yes turkey should stop doing all the tough talk and move in already these kurds are traders they betrayed syria and the syrian government by letting the americans steal the oil the government collapse is thanks to them and their economic sabotage.
now its time for them to pay the price for their treason. if turkey allows this fake kurd entity to exist its the end of turkey in the long run israel will use the kurds to destabilize turkey so israel can snatch away antakiya from turkey.
israel wants to use the kurds as a allied buffer state to destroy and destabilize syria and turkey once they have destroyed syria and driven out its people. they want to annex all the land up to the euphrates according to the odet yinon plan if turkey turely is a independent force they should wipe it off the map and unify syria with its eastern provinces and oilfields again. that would be the best reversal of the jews and their criminal plans
syria needs to prosper under turkish influence. economic development, reconstruction. build up its military and invest in air force and anti air defense. the jewish cancer likes to pummel defenseless people with no air force. syria can be a testing ground for turkish planes and air defense and give pain to the jewish land grabbers. maybe one day the russians will be back. if turkey wants to be leader of the sunnis, it better be prepared to smash israel’s nose
agreed. turkey is the only country willing to help and invest in syria. all others just want to divide syria and make israel safe by making syria a failed state.
hysterically laughable comment as usual. turkiye (you can’t even get the name right) wants the pipeline from qatar, nothing more. erdogan couldn’t care less about arabs.
this is exactly why syria was better off under assad then it is now under jolani. all its military assets are bombed their defences dismantled. the defences while not perfect atleast forced israel to hold back at the 1974 line. and its air defences kept israel away from strategic sites. and it limiteds israels ability to fly directly to iran and turkey to carry out strikes. if turkey dousnt supply syria with modern military equipment asap israel will destroy turkey through the kurds
turds almost as sleazy as amerikunts
and kick out the russians left
turkish strikes seem more accurate and direct and rapid and the booms are bigger than the russian ones. also turk drone monitoring seems more stable than russian cameras.
cause they got the best tech from the usa and isreal. non of it is turkish in anything but name.
good, you don’t want the jews succeed in their landgrabbing towards the greater israel wet dream. if erdogan follow through there will be two larger entities, turkey and iran, to stop any greater israel plan. otherwise erdogan is dreaming of rebuilding the ottoman empire that the faggots in white hall so rudely finished!
thé ottoman empire was destroyed from inside with the (freemassons) young turks… thé first things they did was to promote ” a secular éducation ” as the freemassons did in france in 1905. but the freemassons are all but seculars. they work for the jews. their cult is centered on the figure of hiram, the salomon’s architect who build the temple of the jews.
regardless of how the ottoman empire crumbled, the brits had their eyes on the middle east long before ww1 and the brits went right into the trap, gallipoli. thereafter it was skirmishes all around the me and the brits supplied their troops from egypt. nevermind that, erdogan is working towards a resurrected ottoman empire and the jews are in the way. no love lost there.
ruzzian nazis were kicked out hard from syria 🇷🇺=🏃♂️🤡 😆😆😆
looks like the turks are back at the genocide game. can’t say i feel too sorry for the kurds, though, wretched communist scum that they are.
kurds were screwed by the british. their story ever since has been tragic like ukrainians. do not wish genocide on anybody. kurds sided with american idiots who will dump them. they will disarm and live under turkish occupation now. they chose to reject syria and ally with american invaders.
the turco-fascists were defeated at tishrin. ypg published a video showing the town in their hands and describing the battles that took place in those same streets. no pasarán!
the operation has not started, these are small isolated skirmishes that are happening at the moment. basically these are tests, the turks are preparing their strategy and they are going to strike hard. like in afrin