Backed Kurdish Militias Say They Were Gassed By Turkish Forces

The SDF has been the most effective opponent of IS on the ground in Syria and its fighters control an uninterrupted 400km stretch of the Syrian-Turkish border, from Iraq to the Euphrates, as well as an enclave around Afrin.

Another reason Washington is supporting Turkey in Syria is out of fear of losing influence over Turkey, as Ankara "is looking into other options", according to Alam.

Turkey, which has NATO's second biggest armed forces, demanded that the YPG retreat to the east side of the Euphrates river within a week.

Earlier, a spokesman for the US-led coalition against IS tweeted that SDF fighters had moved east across the Euphrates from Manbij to prepare for "the eventual liberation" of the IS stronghold of Raqqa.

"They can not, will not and under no circumstances get American support if they do not keep that commitment".

The efficiency of Turkish military operations also marked a major boost for the Turkish army, whose reputation was tarnished by the failed July 15 coup against Mr Erdogan. If there are direct clashes, the US would be forced to take sides, he said, and Washington would likely side with its North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ally, whose air base is used to launch coalition airstrikes against the extremists in Syria and Iraq.

US Vice President Joe Biden tried to patch up ties with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government this week, but the conflict in Syria has forced Washington into a delicate balancing act.

It remained unclear whether Turkey-backed Syrian rebels would move against IS-held towns or nearby Kurdish-controlled areas, including the town of Manbij. Manbij lies west of the Eurphrates and Ankara has demanded the Kurds hand it over to Syrian rebels and withdraw.

The Turkish assault, launched in retaliation after a string of militant bombings in Turkey, adds yet another powerhouse force on the ground in an already complicated war. He said the Turkish-backed operation has two main goals - to secure the Turkish border area and to make sure the Kurdish Syrian forces "are not there".

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"It's our right to remain there until" the Ankara-backed Syrian opposition forces take control of the area, Isik said. Turkish leaders have always been concerned over the rapid advance of Kurdish forces fighting ISIS along its southern border, allowing the YPG to take Jarablus would be unacceptable from Turkey's perspective.

Turkey sees the PYD and YPG militia as terror groups bent on carving out an autonomous region in Syria and acting as the Syrian branch of its own outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Speaking to the private NTV television, he said that "for now, the withdrawal hasn't fully taken place".

In another development, United Nations officials yesterday said Russian Federation has agreed to a 48-hour humanitarian ceasefire in the divided Syrian city of Aleppo to allow aid deliveries, but security guarantees are awaited from other parties on the ground.

Osama Abo Elezz, a doctor from the rebel-held part of Aleppo, said the barrel bombs fell Thursday in Aleppo's Bab al-Nayreb district, hitting more than one building.

U.S. officials had tried to allay Turkey's concerns by promising that Kurdish fighters would withdraw from Manbij once the city was recaptured and secure, and that they would not move farther north.

The Kurdish forces' statement says they handed control of the northern Syrian city to a newly-established Manbij Military Council, made up of rebel fighters from the town.

Sharfan Darwish, spokesman for the Syrian Democratic Forces' local group in Manbij, said artillery shelling on Amarneh village, south of Jarablus, continued Friday.

Kozak said an open confrontation between Turkey and the Kurds in Syria would undo much of the progress made working with the Kurdish forces against IS in northern Syria.

Arab media reported Thursday that 10 more Turkish tanks had entered Syrian territory, bringing the number of tanks on Syrian soil to 30.


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