Autonomous Administration denounces Turkish threats against NE Syria
KOBANI, Syria (North Press) – On Monday, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) in the Euphrates region condemned the Turkish threat to launch a potential military operation on areas northeast Syria.
The Executive Council in the Euphrates region issued a public opinion statement, condemning the Turkish threats, calling on the international community and the guarantor countries to assume their responsibility regarding the Turkish violations and expansion projects.
The Autonomous Administration was first formed in 2014 in the Kurdish-majority regions of Afrin, Kobani and Jazira in northern Syria following the withdrawal of the government forces. Later, it was expanded to Manbij, Tabqa, Raqqa, Hasakah and Deir ez-Zor after the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) defeated ISIS militarily.
“Turkey has escalated the pace of its direct threats to penetrate into Syria due to the upcoming Turkish elections and in an attempt to alleviate its domestic crisis,” the statement read.
It added that the Turkish operations would undermine the safety of the region, would revive the activity of the cells of the extremist groups, and would pose a threat to security and stability.
“The Turkish state seizes opportunities and exploits international crises to launch expansionist and racist projects that serve its political interests in northern Syria,” it added.
It also indicated that Turkey aims at displacing and emptying the region of its residents and settle those who serve its interests through a process of demographic change, similar to what happened previously in Afrin, Tel Abyad, and Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain).
In January 2018 Turkey launched a military operation against Afrin “Olive Branch”, and in October 2019, Turkish forces launched a military operation “Peace Spring” against the majority-Kurdish areas of Tel Abyad and Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain) in northeast Syria.