[AlAhram] Syria's military announced Friday it entered the flash-point Kurdish-held town of Manbij and raised the national flag there, where ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire....
has threatened an offensive.
A Kurdish official said the government troops arrived only at the front lines.
Ilham Ahmed, the senior Kurdish official, said the U.S. troops who patrol the town and the tense front line with Turkey-backed fighters have not withdrawn from Manbij. She said an agreement is being worked out with the Russians and the Syrian government that in case of a full U.S. withdrawal, the government would take over.
"The aim is to ward off a
There was no immediate comment from Turkey or the U.S., whose troops have been patrolling the town and the tense front line between Manbij and adjacent towns where Turkey-backed fighters were based.
A resident of Manbij who spoke to The News Agency that Dare Not be Named from the town on condition of anonymity said there was no sign of government troops.
State Syrian TV aired footage from inside Manbij of commercial streets on a rainy day, but didn't show any troops. It aired images of a military convoy driving late at night, reportedly to Manbij.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Syrian troops have deployed around Manbij on the front line with the Turkey-backed fighters to the west.
The announcement and the conflicting reports reflect that all sides are scrambling to reach an agreement on how to replace U.S. troops following the surprise announcement by President Donald Trump
...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States...
The announcement by the Syrian military was quickly welcomed by the Kremlin, whose front man Dmitry Peskov called it a "positive step" that could help stabilize the situation.
The Syrian military declaration came shortly after the main Syrian Kurdish militia invited the government to seize control of Manbij to prevent a
The Syrian Kurdish group, which had partnered with the U.S. since 2014 to fight the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling
Allaharound with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not
reallyMoslems....
group, have sought new allies, reaching out to the government and the Russians to protect their Kurdish-administered areas in north Syria.
The Syrian government has said it welcomes the Kurdish group returning under its authority. But government officials have stated they will not consider an autonomous area, a main demand for the Kurds.
Meanwhile,
...back at the cheese factory, all the pieces finally fell together in Fluffy's mind...
Syrian troops have massed outside of Manbij and in southeastern Syria, where the U.S.-led coalition and Kurdish fighters are battling remnants of IS.
Syria's entry into Manbij comes a day before Moscow is to host top
Turkey, which views the Kurdish militia as a terrorist group, had been threatening a military operation against Manbij. Turkey and its allied fighters have been amassing troops around Manbij in recent days.
Syrian Army Not in Manbij City, Says U.S. Military
[AnNahar] The Syrian army has not entered Manbij, the U.S. military said Friday, after Syrian forces claimed they had gone into the key northern city and raised the national flag.
"Despite incorrect information about changes to the military forces in Manbij city, (the U.S.-led coalition) has seen no indication of these claims being true," U.S. Central Command front man Lieutenant Colonel Earl Brown said.
Manbij is a strategic city close to the
U.S. and French special operations troops are also stationed there, assisting the Kurds, but the Americans will be withdrawing under a surprise pull-out announced by President Donald Trump last week.
Brown called on all parties to respect the "integrity of Manbij and the safety of its citizens."
"Our mission has not changed. We will continue to support our coalition partners, while also conducting a deliberate and controlled withdrawal of forces, while taking all measures possible to ensure our troops' safety and that of our partners on the ground," he told AFP.
The U.S. withdrawal from Syria has sent Kurdish forces scrambling to find allies to fend off a possible attack from
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor....
, which views the fighters as "terrorists."
The Kurds have welcomed a regime advance in Manbij province, a pragmatic shift in alliances that will dash their aspirations for autonomy but could help them cut their losses.
Turkey says Syrian Kurds have no right to help from Damascus[AlAhram]
...the decaying remnant of the Ottoman Empire....
on Friday said a Syrian Kurdish militia "does not have the right" to appeal to Damascus for help to counter a threatened
The Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia "controlling the area with arms does not have the right or power to make a statement or invite other elements on behalf of the local population," the defence ministry said.
"We warn all sides to stay away from provocative actions and making statements that will bring further instability to the region," the ministry said in a statement.
Syrian regime forces on Friday entered the strategic northern city of Manbij, held by the YPG since recapturing the area from the Islamic State jihadist group in 2016.
The militia had said it invited regime troops "to assert control over the areas our forces have withdrawn from, particularly in Manbij, and to protect these areas against a
But
... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey...told news hounds in Istanbul that there was "nothing certain there" in Manbij after he had discussions with intelligence officials.
He dismissed the regime's actions as an attempt to use "psychological" warfare.
The
A
Erdogan said after the delegation's visit he could have a face-to-face meeting with President Vladimir Putin
...President-for-Life of Russia. He gets along well with other presidents for life. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substance. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to him. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead from poisoning by polonium or other interesting substances...in Russia.