Türkiye trusts the Syrian National Army (SNA) will eliminate the PKK terrorist group’s Syrian wing YPG in northern Syria after the overthrow of Bashar Assad’s regime earlier this month, a Turkish Defense Ministry official said Thursday.
“Our preparations and precautions as part of the fight against terrorism will continue until the PKK/YPG lays down its arms and its foreign fighters leave Syria,” the official, who was speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters in the capital, Ankara.
Since 2016, Türkiye has mounted four military operations in northern Syria, citing national security threats. Media reports this week claimed a Turkish assault on the PKK/YPG-held Ain al-Arab, also known as Kobani, was imminent.
Türkiye believes that forces of the Syrian National Army, which it backs, will liberate PKK/YPG-controlled areas in northern Syria, the official said, signaling that Türkiye does not plan an imminent operation into the region by its military.
Türkiye has thousands of troops in northern Syria to push back PKK/YPG terrorists from its borders.
The YPG has close ties with Western countries, including the U.S. and France. Earlier this week, France said the political transition in Syria needed to ensure that the YPG was represented.
The SNA has recently retaken Tal Rifaat and Manbij from the PKK/YPG, which had occupied the two towns since 2017 with the help of the U.S.
The official also said there was no talk of a cease-fire deal between Türkiye and the PKK/YPG in northern Syria, contrary to a U.S. announcement on the issue.
The official was responding to comments from State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller, who said a cease-fire between Türkiye and the YPG around the northern Syrian city of Manbij had been extended until the end of this week “and we will, obviously, look to see that cease-fire extended as far as possible into the future.”
“As Türkiye, it is out of the question for us to have talks with any terrorist organization. The (U.S.) statement must be a slip of the tongue,” the Turkish Defense Ministry official said.
Washington claimed it brokered an initial cease-fire between the Türkiye-backed Syrian opposition and the YPG last week after fighting that broke out earlier this month as anti-regime groups advanced on Damascus and overthrew Bashar Assad.
But the Turkish source said, “Every step taken by terrorist groups that pose a threat to the security of our country and Syria is followed, and preventive and destructive measures are taken.”
The YPG is an ally in the U.S. coalition against Daesh terrorists. For Türkiye, the YPG is an extension of the PKK terrorist group, which has fought the Turkish state for 40 years.
Türkiye regards the PKK and YPG as a unified terrorist group. The U.S. and Türkiye’s Western allies list the PKK as terrorists, but not the YPG.
2,950 terrorists killed
Separately on Thursday, Defense Ministry spokesperson Rear Adm. Zeki Aktürk announced a total of 41 terrorists from the PKK/YPG, as well as Daesh and the Gülenist Terrorist Group (FETÖ), have been eliminated in the past week.
Speaking to reporters in Ankara, Aktürk said a total of 2,959 terrorists have been eliminated in domestic and cross-border operations since Jan. 1.
“1,438 of these were eliminated in northern Iraq and another 1,521 were eliminated in Syria,” Aktürk said, adding that some three terrorists who fled PKK camps surrendered to Turkish forces in the past week.
He assured the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) continued their searches in operational zones across northern Iraq, where security forces seized numerous weapons, munitions and other materials in PKK hideouts.
Israeli aggression
On Israel’s ongoing attacks on the Gaza Strip, Lebanon and Syria, Aktürk said Türkiye “strongly condemns” Israel’s decision to expand its illegal settlements in the occupied Golan Heights.
The Golan Heights is Syrian territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East war.
Currently, approximately 50,000 people live in the Golan, half of whom are Israeli settlers, while the other half consists of Druze, Alawites and others, according to the Israeli daily Haaretz.
There are 33 Jewish settlements in the Golan, incorporated into what is called the Golan Regional Council.
Taking advantage of Assad’s fall, Israel has intensified its airstrikes against military sites across Syria in blatant violation of the country’s sovereignty.
Israel also declared the collapse of a 1974 disengagement agreement with Syria and deployed its forces within the demilitarized zone in the Golan Heights, in a move widely condemned by the United Nations and several Arab nations.
“A cease-fire must be declared and regional stability must be established as soon as possible,” Aktürk told reporters.
“The recent developments in Syria must not cloud the fact that Israel continues its massacres in Gaza by murdering women and children,” he said.