Then, the SDF vowed that it will not accept any corridor between Iran and ‘the Syrian regime’ and will oppose any PMU attempt to enter the Syrian territory, Al Ghad Press reported citing a source among the SDF leadership.
If confirmed, it will be another step in the ongoing escalation in the PMU-SDF relations as well as deterioration of the shaky relations between the US-backed force and the Syrian government.
For the second year, the United States has denied a controversial Kurdish leader a visa to speak at an event at the presitigious National Press Club in Washington, D.C.
“The visa, it was actually refused,” Salih Muslim said in a video.
The Turkish Armed Forces and aligned militant factions delt a devastating blow to the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) today as the Euphrates Shield forces not only captured Ulashi village but also killed and captured a number of Kurdish fighters.
Moments ago, Turkish-backed militants also captured the neighboring village of Bughaz.
Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoy, Chief of the Main Operational Directorate of the Russian General Staff, has confirmed a deal between Russia, the Syrian government and the Kurds in Manbij against Turkey and Turkish-backed rebels.
“The detachments of the Syrian army approached the south-west areas of the city of Menbij, which is under control of Kurdish militia groups,” he said.
“Today, the Russian Centre for reconciliation of the opposing sides sent the first humanitarian convoy with food, medicines and items of the first necessity to Menbij,” he added.
Moscow continues to supports the participation of the Democratic Union Party (PYD) in peace talks on Syria, Russian envoy to the UN Office in Geneva Alexey Borodavkin said Saturday.
Recent peace talks in February between the Syrian government and the opposition ended on Friday in Geneva. New talks are planned later in March.
Cavusoglu called on the US administration to send its own military Special Forces to the Northern Syria in order to fight the IS extremists, and stop their support to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Democratic Union Party (PYD), during the Munich Security Conference.
Joseph Dunford, US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived in Turkey on Friday for discussions about the offensive to retake Raqqa, the Islamic State (IS) stronghold in northern Syria, al-Monitor said.
Syrian Kurdish parties and their multi-ethnic and religious allies announced on Wednesday the completion of the draft constitution for a system of federal government in northern Syria.
Gedo emphasized that the issue is not dead and that the Russian side will continue contacts with the Damascus government. He said the proposed agreement allows for flexibility by stipulating that “each of the parties has the right to abrogate the agreement at any time provided it informs the other of such in writing.”
On the front today was relatively quiet – the Turks pulled up the troops to the bank of the Euphrates, which they reached two days ago, as well as amassing troops on the beachhead to the South coast for a breakthrough to the road to Manbij. Despite talk of truce, clashes have continued, though less intense than yesterday.
On the 6th day of operation “shield of the Euphrates” the Turks decided on the next task – having cleared the surrounding area of Jarablus from the “black” and the Kurds from the bank of the Euphrates to the North of Manbij, while South of Amarinah, forward detachments of “Fallah al-sham” crossed the river and entrenched on the South Bank, creating a springboard for further advance to the South, with the aim of cutting the road running in Manbij. It should be noted that the resistance from both the Caliphate and the Kurds is rather a weak character that facilitates the rapid development of the Turkish operation.The Kurds of the YPG claim that Turkey is making use of sporadic clashes, in order that under the pretext of “combating terrorism” to put forward their mechanized formations as far to the South.
The political naivety of Kurds knew no bounds and culminated recently in the invitation to the US imperialism to establish a no-fly zone against the Syrian air force Rojava. Consider what function had fly zones of the imperialists in Libya. There had – as naive – Russia on such recessed to prevent a supposedly imminent massacre of the Libyan army in the population of Benghazi. In fact, the imperialists took advantage of the no-fly zone to bomb Libya quite up to the fall of his government. From this experience, Russia and China had learned the proclamation analog-fly zones by the UN Security Council not to agree in Syria.
We, the strong believers of democracy who are keen on protecting the security and integrity of the Syrian territory, strongly condemn the Turkish occupation of Syrian territory. We urge the international community to pressure the Turkish regime to stop its interference in the internal affairs of Syria, calling for the immediate withdrawal of its troops from Syria. We also call upon national democratic forces to take the initiative to prevent chauvinist forces from breaking our strong national unity.
On the third day of the operation “Euphrates shield” continued to increase tension on the contact line of Pro-Turkish militants supported by Turkish troops and YPG forces/SDF.
1. During the day continued air strikes by the Turkish F-16 at an advanced position of the Kurds and the Turkish armored vehicles supported advancing troops “green”.
2. In fact, we are now seeing the formation of new lines, where as pulling forces, should be deployed sufficiently serious fights, if the Kurds are completely inferior.
3. Despite American demands for the abandonment Manbij, the radical part of the YPG is opposed to meeting the American demands and prefers a war with Turkey. It is highly likely that everything is going to this option.
Manbij finally passed into the hands of the Kurds and 12 August may be considered the end date of the battle of Manbij. Once again we can note the resistance of the infantry of the Caliphate in the defense of the garrison town of 2 months was able to fend off a superior enemy, inflicted serious casualties – the figures vary from 600 to 1100 killed Kurds over 2 months of fighting in Manbij and eventually was able to back off out of town with a gun in his hand. The militants in Manbij lost from 300 to 500 killed + another 300-400 wounded in the unsuccessful attempts break the siege on the city.
But the stubborn defense of the city does not negate the strategic defeat. The Caliphate lost its largest Outpost in Northern Syria, and the liberated Kurdish forces and NATO now will regroup and will move in the direction of al-Bab, in an effort to cut the militants of the Caliphate in the Northern Syrian province of Raqqa.
Officials of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party in Syria (PYD) do not see a change in the Russian policy towards the Syrian Kurds, nor expect the closure of their office in Moscow, after the Russian and Turkish presidents met last Tuesday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin met with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Moscow, for the first talks to rearrange relations after the November 2015 downing of a Russian aircraft by the Turkish army on Syrian border.
The Turkish journalist Ragip Soylu wrote that the Turkish president Erdogan asked Putin to close down the PYD office in Moscow. However, Putin told Erdogan he didn’t know there was a PYD and YPG [Syrian Kurdish forces] office in the Russian capital, adding that he would closely follow the issue.
Following the death of Bahoz Erdal, one of the three men on the PKK Executive Committee, the longstanding division between the outlawed Kurdistan workers party (PKK) and its Syrian affiliates PYD has deepened.
Dissent within the extremist groups, led by an executive committee in Qandil, northern Iraq, is deepened due to differing ideas on the “relations with Iran and Assad, in the framework of focusing on the civil war in Syria.
Daesh (ISIS) Sunday repelled an advance by U.S.-backed forces on one of its main bastions in northern Syria, seizing back territory it had previously lost, Syrian activists and the extremist group said.The group said its fighters infiltrated villages and mountains near the Daesh-held town of Manbij that were seized last month by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-dominated group aided by U.S. special forces that also includes Arab fighters.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (the Kurdish YPG and some Arab militias, supported by US, French and German special forces) are advancing towards the city center of Manij, an ISIS-controlled logstic hub, located in the Aleppo province.
A source within the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the largest Kurdish party in Rojava, has confirmed that they will be involved in the next round of negotiations at Geneva.
Speaking to Kurdistan24, Sihanouk Dibo an advisor in the PYD, said they had received a detailed letter from United Nations Syria Envoy Staffan de Mistura, who is responsible for resolving the Syria crisis.
The Fourth Revolutionary War 