BEIRUT, LEBANON (2:00 P.M.) - Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim stated on Monday that the Turkish military will shift their attention to three cities in northern Syria that are partially or fully controlled by the Kurdish-led forces.
According to Yildirim, the Turkish military will turn their attention to the cities of Kobane (northeast Aleppo), Qamishli (northern Hasakah), and Hasakah (provincial capital).
All three of these cities have a large presence of fighters from the Kurdish-led People's Protection Units (YPG), who are also considered 'terrorists' by the Turkish regime and their proxies in Syria.
Yildirim reportedly added that Turkey is seeking to create a safe-zone in northern Syria because of the weapons that were provided to the Kurdish-led forces.
Despite Yildirim's claims, he may find some opposition from the Syrian government, who is currently inside both Qamishli and Hasakah.
Furthermore, Kobane is a predominately Kurdish city near the Turkish border; it was under siege by the Islamic State (ISIS) in early 2015.
While their campaign was successful in Afrin, the Turkish-backed rebels do not have much support in predominately Kurdish areas in northeast Syria, so it will require Ankara to deploy their army to take on the YPG and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in cities like Hasakah and Qamishli.
Posted from my blog with SteemPress : https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/turkish-pm-says-kobane-hasakah-qamishli-are-next-targets-after-manbij/