In the fight against the terrorist militia "Islamic State" (IS), the Kurds in northern Syria have long been an ally of the US. However, Washington does not want to help the Kurdish militias in the Turkish offensive threatened by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
A US representative told Reuters that they would not defend the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) led by the Kurdish militia YPG in the event of an attack. This has informed the commander of the SDF.
The US military has cleared two observation posts in Tel Abyad and Ras al Ain in northeastern Syria near the border with Turkey, the spokesman said. The other US observers in the region are so far still on site. Erdogan said the US troops had begun their withdrawal from northern Syria. He had previously phoned US President Donald Trump.
SDF sees fight against the IS at risk
SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali confirmed the current withdrawal. On Twitter, he wrote that US troops had "started to withdraw from the border." They allowed the area to become a war zone. A statement by the SDF states that they are determined to defend the area. This would endanger the fight against IS in the region. The Kurds are holding hundreds of former terrorist militants in northern Syria.
As the Syrian Democratic Forces, we are determined to defend our country at all costs. We call on our Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian, and Syriac people to strengthen their unity and stand by the #SDF in defense of their country.https: //t.co/wvbvaOR37k
- Coordination & Military Ops Center - SDF (@cmoc_sdf) October 7, 2019On Saturday, Erdogan said the deployment of the Air Force and ground forces in the area east of the Euphrates could begin on the weekend. It was his clearest military threat ever since Turkey and the United States agreed to establish a security zone in northern Syria.
The US also keeps out of the offensive
As the White House announced, US forces will not participate in the announced Turkish offensive. In the future, no US soldiers would be present in the "immediate area", it said after the telephone call of the two presidents.
Washington also said that the US would not accept arrested IS fighters from the region at the expense of US taxpayers. Now Turkey is responsible for all IS fighters.
Turkey sees in the YPG, which dominates the SDF, an offshoot of the banned Kurdish workers' party PKK and thus a terrorist organization. The announced offensive justified Erdogan with security concerns of his country.