SDF, Turkish forces clash as Turkey enters fifth day of offensive in Syria
A source in the area told Kurdistan 24 that clashes between the SDF and Turkish forces have erupted on the ground in Gire Spi and its surrounding villages.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Syrian Kurdish forces clashed with Turkish troops on Sunday as Turkey entered the fifth day of its military offensive in northeastern Syria.
Turkish warplanes resumed air raids against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in the Gire Spi (Tel Abyad) and Serekaniye (Ras al-Ain) areas of northeastern Syria at approximately 8 a.m. local time.
A source in the area told Kurdistan 24 that clashes between the SDF and Turkish forces have erupted on the ground in Gire Spi and its surrounding villages.
The source added that the Turkish troops and its rebel-backed groups had advanced about 10 kilometers within Gire Spi, but the SDF is defending the front.
Turkish air raids have also targeted the Kurdish town of Qamishlo.
Turkish warplanes and artillery began shelling Syria’s predominantly Kurdish northeastern town of Serekaniye on Wednesday in an offensive Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called “Operation Peace Spring.”
Dozens are known to have been killed or wounded, and the number of civilians displaced from border towns to areas southward has reached 190,000, according to the Syria-based Kurdish Red Crescent (KRC).
The Turkish offensive is now in its fifth day amid mounting international pressure.
France and Germany have both suspended arms exports to Turkey amid its ongoing military offensive against the Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria.
Both countries warned Turkey that its ongoing offensive could lead to a serious humanitarian catastrophe.
(Additional reporting by Hassan Kosan)