A Bayraktar TB2 combat drone. Source: Baykar.
On November 2, Turkish combat drones carried out three airstrikes on positions of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in the northeastern Aleppo countryside.
The targeted positions are all located near the village of Jarqli, to the west of the town of Kobane which is a well-known stronghold of the SDF.
According to the Hawar News Agency, a soldier of the SAA was wounded as a result of the drone strikes. The SDF-affiliated agency noted that the strikes consider with intense shelling by the Turkish military and its proxies on the villages of Zur Mughar, Zyara, Kharabesan and Coran, which are also located near Kobane.
Turkish media reported that the strikes were a response to an attack by the SDF that targeted a Turkish border post near Kobane in the morning. An anti-tank guided missile was used in the attack. No casualties were reported.
This was the first wave of Turkish airstrikes to hit SDF territory in northern and northeastern Syria this month. In August, several airstrikes hit personnel and positions of the group. The SAA was also targeted on more than one occasion.
Turkey is using its air power to deter and intimidate the SDF. Earlier this year, Ankara wanted to launch a new military operation against the group. However, these plans were apparently canceled after pressure from Russia, Iran and even the United States.
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