Syria: Kurdish resistance to Turkish offensive

On Friday, Turkish forces and their allies face fierce resistance from the Kurds in northern Syria, where they are trying to make further progress on the third day of an offensive that has caused the exodus of civilians.

Launched on Wednesday, the military operation, involving air and ground forces, sparked an international outcry, with several countries, including Europeans, worrying about the plight of civilians, but also the many jihadists held by Kurdish forces and who could escape.

In response to European criticism, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened Thursday to send to Europe millions of migrants welcomed by Turkey after fleeing the war in Syria.

"We will never accept that refugees are used as a weapon and to make us sing," Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, said on Friday.

The de facto green light given by the United States to the Turkish operation – announcing the withdrawal of US soldiers stationed on the Syrian side of the border – was perceived as a betrayal by the Kurds, whose forces had hitherto been allied with the international anti-jihadist coalition led by Washington.

US President Donald Trump however instructed Thursday US diplomacy to try to arrange a ceasefire between the belligerents.

Tunnels and trenches

On the ground, there is fierce fighting between the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – a coalition of Arab and Kurdish fighters – with Turkish troops and their Syrian counterparts in northeastern Syria, according to an NGO.

The SDF is fighting to contain the advance on the ground of Turkish forces, which took control of 11 villages Thursday, two of which have since been taken over by the Kurds, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH) .

The fighting is concentrated in a 120-kilometer strip along the Syrian-Turkish border. "There is intense fighting (…) on several fronts, mainly from Tal Abyad to Ras Al-Ain", border towns, said the OSDH.

The SDS uses tunnels and trenches to defend itself, according to the NGO.

The cities of Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain are the most affected by the fighting, confirmed a press center affiliated with local Kurdish authorities.

Some Arab tribes joined the ranks of the Turkish forces and carried out attacks inside the Kurdish lines by activating sleeping cells, according to the same source.

According to a balance sheet established Thursday evening by the OSDH, 29 FDS combatants and 10 civilians have been killed by air strikes and artillery fire from the Turkish army since Wednesday.

Ankara announced Friday the death of one of his soldiers. Kurdish rockets fired at border towns in Turkey also killed six civilians, including a baby and a girl, according to the same source.

Turkish forces and their allies resort to air strikes, heavy artillery and rocket fire, according to the OSDH.

The cities of Ras al-Ain, Tal Abyad and other border towns have been almost deserted by their inhabitants, causing a great wave of displacement.

The United Nations spoke of 70,000 people fleeing the fighting, heading further east, to Hassaké, a city spared by the fighting.

"What does Erdogan want from us? (…) It's just because we are Kurds? Asks a woman who has taken refuge with her family in a school in Hassaké made available by local Kurdish authorities.

"Unilateral military action"

According to the Turkish media, Turkey wants to take control of the 120-kilometer-long Ras-al-Ain-Tal Abyad strip and the 30-kilometer-long stretch of the main Syrian Kurdish militia away from the border. , People's Protection Units (YPGs), the backbone of the SDSs.

As the main player in the defeat of the Islamic State (IS) group and supported by the West, the YPG is nevertheless considered a "terrorist" organization by Ankara.

Turkey hopes through this offensive to create a "safe zone" where some of the 3.6 million Syrian refugees living on its soil can be settled.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said in a statement that he was forced to close a hospital that the NGO was supporting Tal Abyad. The bombings forced the patients to flee, as the members of the medical staff, according to MSF.

Other humanitarian organizations have warned of a new humanitarian disaster in Syria, where the war began more than eight years ago and involves several major regional and international powers.

In New York, after an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, the five European countries sitting on it – Paris, Berlin, Brussels, London, Warsaw – demanded a halt to this action. unilateral military ".

Denouncing an "absolutely shocking" situation for civilians, France announced Friday that the Europeans would consider "next week" the possibility of sanctions against Turkey.

Echoing the concerns of European leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose country is allied with the Syrian regime, has expressed concern that the Turkish operation will cause a resurgence of ISIS.

Same fears for NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. "Daesh prisoners (an ISIS acronym) should not be able to escape," he said during a visit to Turkey.