Security

Turkish drones target cars near Derik, house in Tal Rifaat

The increased drone attacks come amidst renewed Turkish threats to attack the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeast Syria.

Wladimir van Wilgenburg 2022/06/28 20:11

The aftermath of a Turkish drone strike near Derik, June 28, 2022 (Photo: Kurdistan 24/Social media)

Syria Turkish drone strikes Tel Rifaat Derik Hasakah SDF Turkey Russia Iran United States

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Turkish drones targeted a house in Syria's Tal Rifaat in northern Aleppo and two vehicles in a village near Derik (Malikiye) in the country's Hasakah province on Tuesday morning, local sources reported.

According to the sources, a Turkish drone targeted two vehicles in the village of Xana Serê, 10 kilometers (approximately six miles) from the town of Derik (Malikiye).

The attack killed at least one person, the UK-based Syrian Observatory of Human Rights (SOHR) war monitor reported. Others were injured, some seriously, and the death toll is expected to rise.

Another Turkish drone targeted a civilian house in Tal Rifaat on Tuesday morning. It's unclear if there were any casualties in that strike.

Tuesday's twin attacks follow a Turkish drone strike on a village near Tal Tamr that injured one person on Monday.

The increased drone attacks come amidst renewed Turkish threats to attack the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeast Syria.

On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeated his threats that Turkey would start a new military operation "as soon as preparations on the Syrian border are completed", the pro-Turkish government Daily Sabah reported.

However, he will unlikely launch a new offensive without Russian or US approval. Washington and Moscow have publicly stated they oppose any such operation.

Iran, on the other hand, recently seemed to have changed its objections to a new Turkish operation.

In May, Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said Iran "is opposed to any use of force on the soil of other countries in order to resolve disputes."

However, in a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Ankara Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Iran understands that a new Turkish special operation might be needed, AFP reported.