Small Wars Journal

Turkey Presses Offensive in Syria, Erdogan Hits Out at Critics

Thu, 10/10/2019 - 11:43am

Turkey Presses Offensive in Syria, Erdogan Hits Out at Critics by Daren Butler and Orhan Coskun – Reuters

Turkey pressed its military offensive against U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters in northeast Syria on Thursday, shelling towns and bombing targets from the air in an operation that has forced thousands of people to flee their homes.

At least 23 fighters with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and eight civilians, two them SDF administrators, have been killed, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The SDF has not given a casualty toll, while six fighters with Turkey-backed rebel groups have also been killed.

More than 60,000 people have fled since the offensive began, the Observatory added. The towns of Ras al-Ain and Darbasiya, some 60 km to the east, have been largely deserted as a result of the attack…

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