US army reinforces Syrian city pending Turkish operation

The US has reinforced its positions and troops in the northern Syrian city of Manbij to confront any potential Turkish military operation for which the city might be a battlefield in the war against Kurdish militias, Anadolu has reported.

According to local sources, the reinforcements include around 300 soldiers in addition to armoured vehicles and heavy equipment. “The US brought the reinforcements from its base in the town of Sarrin in the northern countryside near Aleppo,” they explained.

America currently has three surveillance points on the line separating the extent of Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield and the PKK-controlled areas in the villages of Tokhar, Al-Haluwaniyah and Dadat. Over the past three days, US forces have started patrolling the area on the Sajur River and along the Syrian-Turkish border.

Turkey has called upon the US, a fellow NATO member, to expel the PKK from the Arab-dominated city of Manbij and hand over the area to its real owners. The PKK is regarded as a terrorist organisation by Turkey and has occupied the city of Manbij since August 2016, with the support of US forces, as part of the war against Daesh.

Last week, US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert announced the failure of ongoing talks with the Turkish government over the situation in Manbij.

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