Turkey’s military said on Tuesday it has killed at least 260 Syrian Kurdish fighters and “Islamic State” (IS) militants in the first four days of operations in northwest Syria’s Kurdish-dominated region of Afrin. The Observatory said 28 civilians were killed; a number vehemently denied by the Ankara government which insists it is only targeting militants. Three Turkish soldiers have been killed since the offensive began on Saturday. US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis warned that Turkey’s offensive distracted from efforts to defeat IS, something Ankara rejected, saying that the extremist militant group has been effectively wiped out in Syria. Assad has denounced Turkey’s offensive, along with the Kurdish-led administration of northeastern Syria, who have appealed for a mass mobilization in defense of Afrin.

Source: Egypt Independent January 24, 2018 06:33 UTC