File photo
Turkey announcing its planned military operation, which can start at "at any moment,” east of the Euphrates River in Syria, has sent Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) terrorists into a frenzy.
Evaluating the recent developments in the region, Syrian Turkmen Assembly President Dr. Mohammed Wajeeh Juma divulged details about the growing atmosphere of panic among PKK terrorists in an exclusive interview with Yeni Şafak daily.
“They increased the number of barricades. The PKK terror group acts like it will leave this region. They are in high state of fear, ” said Juma.
“They have dug every corner of Manbij. They dug ditches every 100 meters,” he stressed.
Hundreds of tunnels were dug by the PKK/PYD so close to the border in the towns and cities of Tal Abyad, Ras al-Ayn, Ayn al-Arab, Derbasiyeh and Malikiyyeh.
On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that operation could begin "at any moment", asserting that Turkey would never allow a “terror corridor” to be set up along its border.
He said that Turkey is burying terrorists inside the trenches that they dig and will continue to do so in the future.
The National Liberation Front (NLF), an umbrella of anti-regime opposition groups in Syria’s northwestern city of Idlib, said Monday that it would support planned Turkish military operation east of the Euphrates River.It also voiced readiness to confront the YPG/PKK terrorist group.“By allowing sectarian militias into the country, the Assad regime has tried to alter Syria's demographic composition,” the NLF said in a statement."The regime has created a suitable environment for terrorist groups, including the PKK/PYD/YPG, to the detriment of the Syrian people,” the organization added.Turkish, Russian, Iranian FMs to meet in Geneva on SyriaTurkish, Syrian children build friends through footballThe Assad regime, it went on to assert, “has turned Syria into a playground for rival regional powers”.The NLF also warned that “certain parties” were actively working to derail planned Turkish military operation east of the Euphrates."We will support any operation aimed at ensuring regional stability, ending the terrorist presence, and allowing the return of displaced persons to their homes,” the NLF statement read.It added: “We will not allow any group -- be it the PKK/YPG or anyone else -- to divide our country.”In May, 11 different Syrian opposition groups joined forces in the northwestern city of Idlib under the banner of the NLF.Turkey may start new Syria operation at any moment, Erdoğan saysSyrian regime forced 130,000 to leave homes in 2018On Sunday, the U.S. warned opposition groups linked to the Free Syrian Army against supporting anticipated Turkish operation east of the Euphrates River.On Monday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that operation could begin "at any moment", asserting that Turkey would never allow a “terror corridor” to be set up along its border.Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.According to UN figures, hundreds of thousands of people have been killed in the conflict to date.Pentagon hands over Syria observation posts to PKK/PYD ahead of Turkish op
Syrian opposition to back Turkish ops east of Euphrates
“Our only hope is Turkey’s operation”
Underlining the PKK terrorists’ atrocities against civilians, Juma said, “People hate the PKK terrorists here and are waiting for the Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and Free Syrian Army (FSA). They would like to get rid of the terror group and their only hope is Turkey now.”
“Terrorists detained and tortured civilians who returned to Manbij. No one trusts the PKK here,” he added.
Juma also slammed the U.S. administration’s weapon support to the terror organization and said, “They [PKK] seized the properties, including houses and workplaces, of everyone in this region. They are controlling the region with their weapons. The U.S supplies these weapons to them and we reject this stance.
Last week, PKK terrorists accelerated efforts to transfer weapons received from the U.S. under the pretext of fighting Daesh to Syria’s northeastern town of Tal Abyad. The shipments particularly escalated after Turkey started to shell PKK/YPG terror positions in the city and the east of the Euphrates River.
The PYD and its military YPG wing are Syrian branches of the PKK, which has waged war against Turkey for more than 30 years.
A possible mission east of the Euphrates, which Turkey’s leadership has been suggesting for months, would follow two successful cross-border Turkish operations into Syria since 2016 – Operation Euphrates Shield and Operation Olive Branch – both meant to eradicate the presence of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists near Turkey’s borders.