Turkish forces are seen at Mount Barsaya in northeast of Afrin, January 28, 2018 / Khalil Ashawi / Reuters
Turkish forces will lay siege on the Syrian city of Afrin “in the coming days”, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan claimed on February 20.
The president explained a limited progress of the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) against the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the Afrin area since the start of Ankara’s Operation Olive Branch on January 20.
“Preparations in the field take some time. In the coming days, we will lay siege to Afrin city; it’s very important that everywhere we go should remain secure,” Erdogan said, according to Hurriyet newspaper. “Thanks to the siege, the YPG will have no room for bargaining with the Syrian regime.”
Recently, the TAF and the FSA increased the speed of their advance in the area. Experts beleive that this effort is linked to the circulating reports about the widely-reported neogtiations between the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) and the YPG over the expected SAA deployment of Afrin.
im reading contradicting news about Syrian forces entering Afrin….even Kurdish sources claim its not happening….Turks on the other hand are worried…issued statements about crushing Syrian army. confused
Turkey wants YPG to completely leave the area and hand it over to SAA. Both Erodgan and FM Cavusoglu said exactly this “If Assad is going to enter Afrin for the removal of YPG/PKK, we are okay with it but if they are going to protect them or fight against us together; then nothing can stop Turkish soldiers and Syria will enter a new series of disasters”
Well aren’t those more-or-less also the conditions which Damascus should find acceptable. Kurds either join the SAA command chain as loyal Syrians, or hand in their weapons and become civilians. YPG/SDF have shown their true colors as an anti-Syrian American proxy, and shouldn’t continue to exist as an organization.
Not going to happen.
Imo ultimately one gets the KRG situation where SDF forces will become part of the official SAA, like the pesh merga are officially part of the Iraqi Defense Forces. This is something SDF leadership has said to be their goal even a year ago.
The issue is that YPG/PKK is a, no matter how much they deny it, marxist/communist terrorist organisation. Their aim is total independence for the creation of Kurdistan, envisioned as Abdullah Ocalan.
They lack logic and common sense. They are not intelligent and they are pragmatic in a wrong way. I still see comments there and there that “Kurds” which is an absolute wrong way of calling YPG/PKK what it is, may sooner or later give up and work in hand with Damascus. “Kurds” would do that but “YPG/PKK” will never do that.
They have been living in Iraq’s mountains for 30 years just so they could hurt Turkey’s economy. They are rats with no brains.
Soon Assad will learn this by 1st hand.
I’m not an expert, but it seems to be playing out largely as you put it: at this stage, the local Afrin Kurds, who are getting hammered, would like to play ball with the SAA, but the SDF won’t let them.
Agreed.
ok that clears things
Turks issue SVD?
Well, if you want to besiege a city, it would help if you got troops around the city. Oh, of course, I forgot. They have. At a distance of some 20 to 25 kms and with open corridors to the rest of Syria.
Some siege.
I’ll give you this one, as your lot are the lesser of 2 evils.
We’ll get back to you in a month..
Turkey war in Northern Syria is aimed at keeping this zone into war and instability, so to cut it from Syria. The same goal in fact as US/Zionist who pretend to create new influence zone in the region. Wether Northern Syria should be under Turkish, or US control, the result is the same.
Turkey, the US and Israël are still allied. Each part seem to play differently, but in the end, they all pursue the same objective that is to “Balkanize” Syria.
And to be honest,Crypto Jews (Erdogan), Khazar “Jews” (Israël) and US Neo Cons corrupted are the same gang.
I think this is a very clever method to get us(US) into this. Syria/Russia are going to get into a conflict with Turkey and we will be obligated to assist Turkey. Turkey can’y be trusted, they have probably been promised with the position of the hub of all Mid East powers when the Greater Israel Project is completed. They are the only Arab nation that won’t lose major, or even all, of their territory to the GIP. Iran has to be broken so Israel and Turkey are the hubs of wealth and power.
Turkey&Iran isn’t an arab nation only similar thing between arabs,persians,kurds and turks are on same religion. That also Turkish language very different than both arab and persian and also kurdish.
Do you think the NWO elite care about that distinction? The Zionist banking cabal can only be successful if the destroy nationalism and sovereignty.