{"id":22593,"date":"2018-01-27T18:50:04","date_gmt":"2018-01-27T18:50:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2018\/01\/27\/turkey-advances-offensive-into-syrian-kurdish-enclave\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T02:19:28","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T02:19:28","slug":"turkey-advances-offensive-into-syrian-kurdish-enclave","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/news\/2018\/01\/27\/turkey-advances-offensive-into-syrian-kurdish-enclave\/","title":{"rendered":"Turkey advances offensive into Syrian Kurdish enclave"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

AZAZ, Syria \u2014 Fighting raged in northwestern Syria Saturday as Turkish troops and allied militiamen tried to advance their week-long offensive in a Kurdish-controlled enclave, Syrian opposition activists said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bombardment could be heard a few miles away from Afrin in the Turkish-controlled town of Azaz, where Associated Press journalists were on a media trip organized by the Turkish government and escorted by Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters taking part in the offensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Azaz is one of the fronts from where Turkish troops and allied Syrian fighters of the so-called Free Syrian Army have launched a push into Afrin to clear the area of a Syrian Kurdish militia which Ankara considers to be a national security threat. The militia known as the People\u2019s Protection Units, or YPG, has been a partner of the United States in the fight against the Islamic State group in Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kurdish and other activists said Saturday\u2019s fighting concentrated around the Rajo area in Afrin, amid heavy shelling and airstrikes by the Turkish forces. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the Syria war through a network of activists on the ground, said Turkish helicopters were attacking the town of Rajo, struggling to make progress after a week of attacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Turkey\u2019s official news agency said rockets fired from the Afrin region in Syria hit a house in the border province of Kilis, injuring two people. Another rocket fired was fired and struck the town of Reyhanli, in Hatay province, slightly injuring one child, the Anadolu news agency reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Turkish military said in a statement that two Turkish soldiers and two allied Syrian fighters were killed Saturday. It claimed 447 YPG militants were \u201cneutralized\u201d since Jan. 20.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AP journalists saw a checkpoint in the village of Maarin, manned by local security trained and equipped by Turkey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Turkish special forces police officers secure a convoy of journalists as Turkey-backed opposition fighters of the Free Syrian Army man a checkpoint at the village of Maarin, in the outskirts of the northwestern city of Azaz, Syria, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2018. (Lefteris Pitarakis\/AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In nearby downtown Azaz, about 22 kilometers (14 miles) from Afrin, people were going about their daily lives and stores were open, but armed men were keeping a watchful eye. In the town briefly controlled by the Islamic State group at one point and a rebel bastion since 2014, children now waved Turkish flags for their journalist visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Syrian local security forces wore recycled Turkish uniforms, some with the word POLIS written on them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The boom of continuous shelling and YPG watch points in the distance were a reminder that the frontline with Afrin was near.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A local policeman in Azaz told the AP that Kurds in Afrin were shelling the towns of Azaz and Marea, which have been under Turkish patronage since its 2016 cross-border operation to limit Kurdish expansion and clear IS from its border.<\/p>\n\n\n\t