On Tuesday, the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES) warned of Turkey’s continued escalation in northern and northeastern Syria, amid silence from the guarantor countries of the Syrian ceasefire agreements.
In October 2019, Turkish forces and their affiliated armed Islamist opposition factions, also known as the Syrian National Army (SNA), launched Operation Peace Spring against Serre Kaniyeh and Tel Abyad under the guise of pushing back the fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) away from the Turkish border with Syria.
Following Turkey’s occupation of the two cities, Turkey signed two cease-fire agreements, one with Russia and the other with the US, stipulating the cessation of all hostilities and the withdrawal of the SDF 32 kilometers from the Turkish border .
On May 21, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced plans for another major cross-border military incursion into northern Syria.
Later on June 1, Erdogan specified his targets in the two northern Syrian cities of Manbij and Tel Rifat.
In a statement, AANES said that despite the fact that Turkey has not started its military operation in northern Syria, it has continued to target civilians and destroy infrastructure.
The Autonomous Administration warned that the silence of the international community and the guarantor countries of the ceasefire agreements, encourages Turkey to escalate its aggression and undermines the security and stability of the region.
The administration has expressed doubts about possible collusion between actors in Syria and Turkey, stressing that this will only lead to further Turkish attacks.
The administration called on all actors to intervene immediately to stop Turkish attacks, noting that “the escalation is just a prelude to more expansion and occupation, not to mention laying the groundwork for the Islamic State (ISIS) to regroup.”
