Ankara will take action to crush Kurdish militia forces east of the Euphrates river in Syria in the near future, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.
ANKARA (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th October, 2018) Ankara will take action to crush Kurdish militia forces east of the Euphrates river in Syria in the near future, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday.
"Hopefully very soon, we will destroy terror nests east of Euphrates with your help," Erdogan said addressing Turkey's special forces, according to the NTV broadcaster.
The Syrian region east of the Euphrates is controlled by the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which is regarded by Ankara as an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The PKK is listed as a terrorist organization in Turkey.
On January 20, Turkey and the Free Syrian Army opposition forces launched Operation Olive Branch in Syria's Afrin to "clear" Turkey's Syrian border of YPG militia. Ankara announced that Afrin was under complete control of Turkish forces in March.
