Russia conducts joint patrol with SDF in Syria’s Manbij
MANBIJ, Syria (North Press) – Russian Military Police (MP) conducted a joint patrol with Manbij Military Council (MMC) on Thursday to check out the positions that the MMC share with Syrian government forces, on the northern front near the contact lines with Turkish-backed armed opposition factions, also known as Syrian National Army (SNA).
A source from the village of al-Hussan, 12 km northeast of Manbij, said that the Russian patrol, consisting of an armored vehicle accompanied by three military vehicles affiliated with the Manbij Military Council, entered the village this morning.
The MMC was founded in 2017 and is consisted of fighters from all the communities of the region such as the Arabs, Kurds, Circassians and Turkmen. It operates under the umbrella of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The patrol checked out the positions of the government forces and the MMC in the village, and then headed to the villages of al-Jat and al-Hoshariya, north and northeast of Manbij respectively.
The city of Manbij is located in the eastern countryside of Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria. It is 30 km from the Turkish border. It has a population of about 700.000.
Manbij is of strategic location that can change the balance of power in northern Syria as it is located on the M4 highway, and it is the link between west and east of the Euphrates.
This patrol is the first after the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) declared a state of emergency, in preparation for confronting the Turkish threats of carrying out a military operation targeting the cities of Manbij and Tel Rifaat, northern Syria.
On Wednesday, the AANES declared a state of emergency and prepared plans to face any possible Turkish invasion on the region.
The Turkish forces and their affiliated SNA factions has intensified their shelling during the past days on most of the villages located on the contact lines in the north, northeast and northwest countryside of Manbij.
This escalation comes in light of recent Turkish statements about an imminent military operation targeting the cities of Manbij and Tel Rifaat.