At least 11 people, including civilians, were killed in attacks by Kurdish-led forces on positions held by Turkey-backed militants in northern Syria, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The attack targeted a military position used by pro-Turkey factions for human smuggling operations into Turkey.
The war monitor reported that the attack led to the deaths of a woman, her two children, and a man, along with seven Turkey-backed militants. In a separate operation, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) infiltrated a Turkish-backed group’s military position, killing three militants. As they withdrew, the SDF booby-trapped the position, causing the deaths of four more pro-Turkey fighters and four civilians, including the woman and her children.
On Sunday, 15 more Turkish-backed militants were killed in a similar attack by the SDF, highlighting the ongoing conflict in the region. The SDF, a US-backed force that played a pivotal role in defeating the Daesh group in Syria, is dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG), which Turkey views as linked to the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party). Turkish troops and their allies have held control over significant portions of northern Syria following a series of cross-border offensives aimed at curbing the SDF’s influence.