The Turkish army continued Thursday, November 24 its air raids and artillery fire against localities and military positions of Kurdish forces and the regular Syrian army in Syria. Since Sunday, 35 Kurdish fighters and 23 Syrian soldiers have been killed in Turkish shelling, according to a count established by the NGO Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSDH).
With our correspondent in the region, Paul Khalifeh
After a respite of a few hours, a Turkish drone on Thursday targeted Kurdish military positions in the province of Hassaké, in northeastern Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Turkish artillery for its part targeted seven localities near the city of Kobane, east of Aleppo, and a dozen villages and military infrastructure along the front line separating the regions controlled by Ankara and territories administered by Kurdish forces in northern and northeastern Syria.
The Turkish bombardment does not distinguish between Kurdish fighters and the Syrian government army, which share the same front against rebels close to Ankara and the Turkish army.
The escalation in these regions, where many actors are entangled, follows the attack in Istanbul on November 13, attributed by the Turkish authorities to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Since this explosion which killed six people and injured 80, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has threatened to launch a ground offensive against Kurdish strongholds in Syria.
Despite repeated warnings from the United States, protectors of the Kurdish forces, and from Russia, an ally of the Syrian government, the Turkish army continues to increase the pressure on the ground.
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