Turkish-backed groups shell Manbij countryside

This is not the first time Turkish-backed groups bombed the Manbij Military Council’s positions near Manbij and al-Bab recently.
A fighter of the Manbij Military Council (MMC) on the frontline with Turkish backed groups (Photo: MMC).
A fighter of the Manbij Military Council (MMC) on the frontline with Turkish backed groups (Photo: MMC).

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Turkish-backed groups on Sunday evening shelled the countryside of Manbij.

“The Turkish occupation army and its mercenaries are targeting al-Gat village and al-Hoshariya with mortar shells and heavy weapons,” the Manbij Military Council said in a statement on Sunday evening.

This is not the first time Turkish-backed groups bombed the Manbij Military Council’s positions near Manbij and al-Bab recently. Similar attacks occurred on Jan. 4 near Qurt Weran village, al-Bab countryside, and on Jan. 8 near the al-Gat village, Manbij countryside.

https://twitter.com/Rojava_Media/status/1348313658468790274

The Manbij Military Council, backed by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), liberated Manbij with US support in 2016 in one of the bloodiest campaigns Syria has witnessed against the so-called Islamic State.

However, US forces left the town and other border regions in northern Syria in October 2019 after Turkey targeted the SDF-held towns of Tal Abyad and Serekaniye (Ras al-Ain).

In 2019, after a long-threatened Turkish military incursion into northeast Syria to confront the Kurdish elements of the SDF, the US first mediated a ceasefire agreement between Turkey and the SDF on Oct. 17. A second such agreement, mediated by Moscow, followed on Oct. 22.

The Russian-Turkish deal involved a withdrawal of SDF forces up to 30 kilometers from the Turkish-Syrian border and joint Turkish-Russian patrols in a 10-kilometer wide strip along the border. Since the agreement was reached, the two sides have carried out dozens of joint patrols.

The SDF has also reached a separate deal with Damascus to deploy Syrian government forces to protect the border against Turkish attacks.

Yet, despite the agreements, Turkish-backed groups and the Turkish army itself continue to target SDF-held areas periodically, including the region of Manbij this month.

Since the past two months, there have been increased shelling and fighting near the Ain al Issa town. Moreover, the Tal Tamr countryside was targeted in the last few days, including near the Russian base in Tal Tamr.

Senior Syrian Kurdish officials have regularly called on Russia and the US to pressure Turkey to abide by the earlier ceasefire agreements.

Editing by Khrush Najari.