Turkish forces in Syria fired on protesters

Turkish forces are said to have fired live ammunition at protesters during a joint patrol with Russian troops on the Syrian border. A UK-based monitoring group says two protesters were killed, but the account has not been verified.

Video obtained by Reuters shows protesters hurling rocks at a military convoy near the town of Kobani, Syria.

Turkish forces in patrol shoot at protesters in Syria’s Kobani https://t.co/OCxXaie2oS pic.twitter.com/80cqrx5KwM

— Mutlu Civiroglu (@mutludc) November 12, 2019

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war from Britain, said that two were killed and seven injured.

But a witness told Reuters that only three people were wounded at the scene, without mentioning any dead.

The witness said the soldiers first fired their weapons into the air in an attempt to disperse the crowd, before firing at the protesters.

Tear gas was also used, according to the witness.

READ: Bomb attacks kill 5, injure dozens in Syria’s Qamishli

A statement by the Turkish Defense Ministry said a patrol was conducted “with due care and diligence for the safety of both civilians and our military personnel despite provocation by terrorists.”

TASS news agency cited Russia’s Defense Ministry as saying that Turkish forces and Russian military police conducted a patrol north of Kobani without mentioning a shooting incident.