- Title: Explosions lit night sky as Turkish operation advances into Syria
- Date: 9th October 2019
- Summary: AKCAKALE, TURKEY (OCTOBER 9, 2019) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) ROCKETS BEING FIRED TO THE SYRIAN SIDE OF THE BORDER VARIOUS OF EXPLOSIONS GOING OFF AS ROCKETS LANDS ON TARGETS / AUDIO OF EXPLOSIONS HEARD IN THE BACKGROUND TEL ABYAD, SYRIA (OCTOBER 9, 2019) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) VARIOUS OF FIRE BURNING AND SMOKE BILLOWING OUT BEHIND BUILDINGS AKCAKALE, TURKEY (OCTOBER 9, 2019) (REUTERS) (NIGHT SHOTS) VIEW OF THE BORDER WITH AUDIO OF EXPLOSION IN THE BACKGROUND AUDIO OF EXPLOSION HEARD IN THE NIGHT
- Embargoed: 23rd October 2019 20:35
- Keywords: Turkey Syria military operation airstrikes Syrian border town Tel Abyad Operation Peace Spring
- Location: AKCAKALE, TURKEY, TEL ABYAD, SYRIA (AS SEEN FROM AKCAKALE, TURKEY)
- City: AKCAKALE, TURKEY, TEL ABYAD, SYRIA (AS SEEN FROM AKCAKALE, TURKEY)
- Country: Turkey
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
- Reuters ID: LVA001B0DO7D3
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Turkish artillery continued to strike YPG targets in Syrian border town of Tel Abyad on Wednesday night (October 9) after Turkish troops and their Syrian rebel allies entered northeast Syria, starting a land offensive against Kurdish militia fighters.
Earlier on Wednesday, Turkish warplanes and artillery pounded Kurdish YPG targets with air strikes and artillery barrages in a cross-border military operation just days after U.S. troops pulled back from the area and left Kurdish allies vulnerable to the attacks of Turkish Armed Forces (TSK).
The assault on the Kurds - for years Washington's main allies on the ground in Syria - is potentially one of the biggest shifts in years in an eight-year war that has drawn in global and regional powers. The Kurds played a leading role in capturing territory from Islamic State, and now hold the largest swathe of Syria outside of Bashar al-Assad's government's hands.
U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to pull forces out of the way was denounced by some Kurds as a "stab in the back" and strongly criticised in Washington, even by loyal senior figures in his own Republican Party.
Trump called the Turkish assault a "bad idea" and said he did not endorse it. He expected Turkey to protect civilians and religious minorities and prevent a humanitarian crisis, he said.
(Production: Mert Ozkan, Deniz Uyar) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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