Six Turkish soldiers have been killed in a retaliatory operation by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) near the northern Syrian towns of Tabqa and Ayn Issa (Eyn Îsa). The SDF operation was carried out in response to the recent Turkish military campaign in North and East Syria.
The Turkish military has been carrying out intensive drone strikes on civilian infrastructure in various parts of Syria under the control of the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES). The strikes came after Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, threatened to expand operations in Syria and Iraq in retaliation for a recent attack in Ankara in which two individuals carried out a bomb attack outside the Interior Ministry’s General Directorate of Security (national police HQ) building, injuring two police officers.
The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) claimed responsibility for the bombing, but on 4 October Fidan claimed that the two attackers had been trained in Syria, and warned that all infrastructure, facilities and installations linked to Kurdish armed groups in Iraq and Syria were now considered legitimate targets for Turkish security forces.
According to the SDF statement, one fighter from Turkish-backed Syrian groups was also killed, and five others injured in addition to the Turkish soldiers.
The SDF further reported significant damage to heavy weapons at Turkish military bases around Ayn Issa.
