Syrian Democratic Forces call on Russia and Iran to block Turkey’s attack

The leader of the US-backed Kurdish-Arab coalition Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) called on Moscow and Tehran today to prevent Ankara from launching a new offensive in northern Syria, days before a Turkish-Russian-Iranian summit. on the subject of the war in this country.

The Turkish army has been deployed since 2016 in northern Syria, around the city of Afrin and in Idlib, one of the few areas not controlled by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Between 2016-19, Turkey, with the help of Syrian rebels, carried out three large-scale operations along the border to drive out Kurdish fighters it describes as “terrorists”.

Since late May, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly threatened a new military operation in northern Syria against the Kurds.

“We hope that (these attacks) will not be repeated and that the Kurds (…) will not be left to their own devices in these negotiations between the major powers,” SDF chief Mazloum Abdi told a news conference in Hasakah. , a zone in northeastern Syria controlled by the Kurds.

“After the recent talks with Russia, in order to protect these areas, we agreed to allow more Syrian soldiers to enter Kobani and Manbij[Kurdish cities in the north]in addition to those already at the border,” he continued. , without further clarification.

“We are convinced that Russia and Iran will not accept Turkey’s demands” at the meeting to be held on Tuesday in Tehran, he added.

At this meeting, the presidents of Russia Vladimir Putin, Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iran’s Ibrahim Raisi will discuss the issue of Syria. The three countries started in 2017 the so-called “Astana process” which aims to bring peace to this country.

RES-EMP

View the news feed and get the latest news.