Mazloum Abdi denies SDF’s involvement in Istanbul explosion

QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Commander-in-Chief of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazloum Abdi denied on Monday their involvement in the blast which killed six people and injured dozens others in the city of Istanbul a day earlier.

Abdi said in a tweet, “We stress that our forces have nothing to do with the Istanbul explosion.”

The commander emphasized on their rejection to the Turkish claims “which accuse our forces of carrying out the attack.”

Abdi expressed his condolences to the Turkish people, wishing quick recovery to the wounded.

On Sunday, an explosion took place in a shopping street in the Taksim Square in Istanbul city.

The Turkish authorities pointed the finger at the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), and published a picture for a woman called Ahlam al-Bashir, purporting that she had received instructions from the SDF-held city of Kobani, northern Syria, and that she had entered Turkey from Afrin, a city in northwest Syria invaded by Turkey in January 2018.

Earlier today, a source of the SDF leadership told North Press, “The accusations are baseless, as everyone knows the military formation of the SDF and their tasks which are limited to fighting terrorism and protecting Syrian areas.”

Reporting by Adnan Hamo