- Title: U.S. troops cross into Iraq as part of withdrawal from Syria
- Date: 21st October 2019
- Summary: DOHUK, IRAQ (OCTOBER. 21, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF U.S. MILITARY VEHICLES DRIVING IN DOHUK PROVINCE IN NORTHERN IRAQ VEHICLE BEARING U.S. FLAG DRIVING WITH CONVOY VARIOUS OF U.S. MILITARY CONVOY DRIVING TOWARDS U.S. BASE
- Embargoed: 4th November 2019 08:00
- Keywords: Iraq Syria US troops Military Convoy
- Location: DUHOK, IRAQ / TEL TAMAR, SYRIA
- City: DUHOK, IRAQ / TEL TAMAR, SYRIA
- Country: Various
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
- Reuters ID: LVA001B21IKAV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: U.S. troops crossed into Iraq early on Monday (October 21), part of the withdrawal from northeast Syria ordered by President Donald Trump that opened the way for Turkish troops to launch an offensive against Kurdish fighters in the area.
A Reuters cameraman saw more than 100 vehicles crossing from the northeast tip of Syria, where Turkey has agreed to pause its offensive for five days under a deal agreed between Washington and Ankara. The truce expires late on Tuesday (October 22).
Footage from Reuters and Kurdish Rudaw TV showed armoured vehicles carrying U.S. troops through the Sahela border crossing into Iraq's northern province of Dohuk.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Saturday (October 19) that all of the nearly 1,000 troops withdrawing from northern Syria are expected to move to western Iraq to continue the campaign against Islamic State militants.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has warned that Ankara will resume its military assault in Syria when the deadline expires if the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have not pulled back from its proposed "safe zone" area spanning the border.
Erdogan has also said that Turkey will set up a dozen observation posts in the planned "safe zone." A witness in the region said Turkish forces had already begun establishing two such posts on Sunday (October 20), drawing criticism from Iran on Monday.
(Production: Kawa Omar, Mohammed al-Ramahi, Maher Nazeh, Mohammed Katfan, Chiara Rodriquez) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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