Syrian ‘guests’ in Turkey have been used not only as political tools for foreign ambitions, but also for reinforcing the conservative and Islamist ideology promoted by Erdogan’s AKP.
On January 20, Turkey began its second military campaign in northern Syria. The target is Afrin, a Kurdish-majority canton and stronghold of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the military alliance led by the People’s Protection Unit (YPG).
The Turkish intervention is backed by the Free Syrian Army (FSA), comprised of several Syrian opposition groups such as the Islamic Ahrar Al-Sham and the Hamza Brigade. Turkey’s ‘Operation Olive Branch’ objective is aimed at neutralising the YPG, which Ankara considers a terrorist group and offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), the Kurdish militia involved in an ongoing conflict with the Turkish state since the eighties.
However, Washington has for long regarded the YPG as its best ally in the Middle East, thanks to the crucial role played by the Kurds in the US-led campaign against the Islamic State (ISIS) in Syria.
This military intervention follows the ‘Operation Euphrates Shield’ launched in Northern Syria in 2016. The Turkey-led operation was supported by the FSA against ISIS and the YPG/SDF. The most striking difference between the two Turkeyled interventions lies in the fact that while the former was launched against the Islamic State, the latter is allegedly being conducted with the support of ISIS fighters, to destroy Syrian Kurdish militias.
The international players
This operation launched by Ankara against the US-backed YPG has exacerbated the tense and delicate relations between the several international players involved in the Syrian war, and not only between the two NATO allies.
The military intervention jeopardises Washington’s diplomatic relations in the region, as well as the fragile agreements between Iran, Turkey and Russia borne out of the recent Sochi conference hosted by Moscow and strongly boycotted by the Syrian opposition.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Rohingya: Walk A Mile In Their Shoes
My reminiscences of Cox’s Bazar are deeply rooted in my childhood during family vacations taken with my parents and three siblings - horse rides on the beach, sunsets against the widest horizon, charcoal barbecues by nightfall, and copious amounts of seafood throughout our stays. My recent trip to Cox’s Bazar, some 20 odd years later, however, was starkly contrasting in that the circumstance was dire, one which continues to sit steep in my mind.
Suu Kyi Risks Losing Ground To Military Over Rakhine Crisis
YANGON • Locals like to joke that Myanmar has two governments. That’s not very far from the truth.
Satellite Images Show Sprawling Rohingya Refugee Camps
Massive, makeshift refugee camps are sprawling over farms and open land in southern Bangladesh as more than 500,000 Rohingya Muslims flee violent attacks in their predominantly Buddhist homeland of Myanmar.
Akhtarun Nahar Ivy's 9
UNB Cultural DeskArt is a unique, powerful tool of connecting people, culture, says Ahn Seong-Doo
Ganasangeet Festival Still Showing Hope For Music
Ganasangeet Festival Still Showing Hope For Music
Trump Hurtles Toward Three Nuclear Crises
Trump Hurtles Toward Three Nuclear Crises
What Bangladesh Stands To Gain From Bangabandhu-1
What Bangladesh Stands To Gain From Bangabandhu-1
Where Good Voices Must Go Bad
Where Good Voices Must Go Bad
The minister's one hundred taka
The minister’s one hundred taka
Dhaka Wants Delhi Pressure For Rohingya Return
Indian foreign secretary visits Bangladesh, no development on Teesta front
