Author Topic: Turkey, US conduct ‘safe zone’ joint patrols in north Syria  (Read 188 times)

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Turkey, US conduct ‘safe zone’ joint patrols in north Syria
By SARAH EL DEEByesterday
 

TAL ABYAD, Syria (AP) — Turkish and U.S. troops conducted their first joint ground patrol in northeastern Syria on Sunday as part of a so-called “safe zone” that Ankara has been pressing for in the volatile Kurdish-administered region.

Turkey hopes the buffer zone, which it says should be at least 30 kilometers (19 miles) deep, will keep Syrian Kurdish fighters away from its border. Turkey considers these Kurdish militias a threat, but they’ve also been key U.S. allies in the fight against the Islamic State group.

The presence of Turkish troops inside Kurdish-administered areas is a major development in the conflict along the border. Over the past four years, Washington has often had to play the role of arbiter, trying to forestall violence between its NATO ally Turkey and its local Syrian partners, the Kurdish-led fighters.

https://apnews.com/b6e7c9b282844b92bed9a2e5bc7703d9