"It's the end of the road for those who believe they can stall Turkey by pun games, by changing names of terrorist organizations, by sharing pictures showing their soldiers next to terrorists," Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.
Erdogan was directly referring to the US and their support of the Syrian Defense Forces (SDF) and their fiercest fighters, the People's Defense Units (YPG), who are tied to the PKK, an internationally outlawed terrorist group that have killed about 40,000 people in Turkey over three decades.
"We oppose this move and call for immediate de-escalation," US Defense Department spokesperson Phil Ventura said in response to the Turkish president's stated plans to attack and invade the Kurdish region of northeastern Syria.
Ilham Ahmed, a co-chair of the Syrian Democratic Council, confirmed on November 20 that Turkish airstrikes had struck near Derik, a town within the US military's area of occupation.
The Turks are aware that the US military operates a joint training camp there with their SDF and YPG allies. Two SDF soldiers died and three others were wounded in the attack on November 22, which marks the first Turkish attack so close to a US military occupation base in Shamuka, Syria.
The Turkish military also attacked territory between Raqqa and Hasakah that is controlled jointly by US and Russian forces.
The northeastern quadrant of Syria is not solely inhabited by Kurds, but they have always been a very sizeable majority. Kobani is where the US and the Kurdish SDF and YPG formed their military alliance to fight ISIS.
On November 23, Erdogan said, "Air strikes against terrorists in Syria and Iraq are only beginning. We have never been more serious about securing our borders. We will launch the operation at the best possible time for us. The administrations in Syria and Iraq must not feel threatened. We intend to ensure the territorial integrity of these countries," he said in his speech to the parliament.
Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on November 23 that Turkish armed forces have neutralized more than 254 terrorists and hit 471 targets during military operations in Syria and Iraq.
"Claw Sword", the Turkish military codename, began on November 20. Using 20 drones and over 50 aircraft, strikes were carried out against the SDF and YPG bases in Syria and areas in northern Iraq as well.
Turkish F-16 fighters resumed strikes on targets in Syria on November 21 and 22 and Erdogan has threatened an intended ground invasion into northeast Syria following the November 21 attack on the Turkish town of Karkamis near Gaziantep that killed three civilians.
A Turkish ground operation would require air support, and the US and Russia would have to first allow Turkish planes to use the airspace under their control.
Turkey has launched three prior ground offensives against SDF and YPG forces in northern Syria over the past several years. Turkish officials continue to publicly condemn Washington's partnership with Kurdish forces.
Ankara's most recent incursion against the YPG in October 2019 initially displaced some 300,000 civilians and led to extensive allegations of war crimes against local populations by Turkey's mercenaries who are followers of Radical Islam, the same political platform as Al Qaeda and ISIS.
Turkey has been protecting and defending Idlib, which is the last terrorist-occupied area in Syria. The terror group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), has recently made advances in Afrin and it is widely believed that Turkey will use HTS as part of its attack on Manbij.
Revenge for the Istanbul attack
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