hundreds killed in Turkish operation in Syria’s Afrin: Russia
Tehran ( KNA) - Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova says several hundred people, including civilians, have been killed during Turkey's military operation in Syria’s northwestern region of Afrin.
The Russian official made the remarks on Wednesday as Ankara has been pressing ahead with the so-called Olive Branch operation against militants from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in Afrin since January 20.
Ankara considers the US-backed YPG to be a terrorist group and an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is fighting for independence in Turkey's largely Kurdish southeast since 1984.
The Turkish incursion in Afrin started after the United States said it sought to set up a thousand-strong force in Syria near the Turkish border comprising the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is led by the YPG.
Turkey first deployed forces to northern Syria in 2016 to repel the YPG under the banner of "Operation Euphrates Shield."
Source: Press TV