A Turkish soldier is seen on an armored vehicle positioned on the Syrian border in Ceylanpınar, just 200 meters from the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain. (Photo: Today's Zaman, Hüseyin Sarı)
21 July 2013 /TODAY'S ZAMAN WITH REUTERS, İSTANBUL
Clashes between an al-Qaeda affiliate and the Democratic Union Party (PYD) -- a Syrian offshoot of the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) -- have spread to Tel Abyad, a Syrian town very close to Turkey's Akçakale district in Şanlıurfa province, a development coming on the heels of clashes in another Turkish border town that killed one.
Tel Abyad lies in the opposition-held Raqqa province. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said clashes began after the PYD in the area discovered fighters from the al-Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front trying to rig one of their bases with explosives.
According to some reports, the PYD retaliated by kidnapping several fighters, including the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS), one of the most powerful al-Qaeda-affiliated forces fighting in Syria. Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP the leader's nom-de-guerre is Abu Musab, though it was unclear whether he is Syrian or foreign.
After fighting rekindled on Saturday in Tel Abyad, which had been rather free of clashes for nine months, 15 Syrians injured during the clashes between the PYD and the al-Nusra Front were brought to the Turkish border town of Akçakale for treatment. The injured Syrians are being treated in Akçakale State Hospital, while those with severe injuries have been sent to well-equipped hospitals in nearby cities.
The PYD's capture of Tal Abyad came days after the militant group seized control of Ras al-Ain, a Syrian town near Turkey's Ceylanpınar district in Şanlıurfa province, and replaced the flag of opposition Free Syrian Army (FSA) with their own. The Syrian Kurdish militants won Ras al-Ain after days of clashes with fighters affiliated with the al-Qaeda linked al-Nusra Front. Just days before taking the town, the PYD declared it would establish autonomy in northern Syrian on July 19.
Activists said that the al-Nusra Front, which the PYD forced out of Ras al-Ain two days ago, counterattacked on Saturday in a bid to regain the key border town. It was reported that the al-Qaeda affiliated group put 3,000 fighters into massive attacks on PYD forces in Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad. Residents of the two Turkish towns across the border reported hearing fire from mortars and heavy weapons.
Some reports said the al-Nusra Front joined forces with ISIS as well as the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham and Tawhid al-Asima brigades -- groups fighting against the Bashar al-Assad regime -- to take the northern line back from PYD forces. The al-Nusra Front reportedly retook four northern villages that were under the PYD control after the intense fighting on Saturday.
Syria's ethnic Kurdish minority has been alternately battling both Assad's troops and the opposition. Kurds claim to back the uprising, but opposition groups accuse them of making deals with the regime to ensure their security and autonomy during the conflict.
The PYD's capture of Ras al-Ain has fueled Ankara's fears that the emergence of an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria could embolden homegrown PKK terrorists fighting for autonomy in Turkey.
Recent bold moves along the Turkish border are also stoking security concerns in southern Turkish cities. On Saturday night, two anti-aircraft shells hit two separate garden walls in Ceylanpınar, putting town residents on red alert. No injuries were reported. Officials have asked Ceylanpınar residents to stay in their homes and not go outside unless necessary.
On Friday, Turkish warplanes took off from Diyarbakır and flew low over areas of the Turkish-Syrian border where clashes continue to inspect the area; authorities say they didn't violate Syrian airspace. The military has said it strengthened security in the area with armored vehicles.
Last Tuesday, stray bullets from Syria struck a police headquarters and several homes in Ceylanpınar, several hundred meters from the Syrian border.
Also Tuesday in Ceylanpınar, one Turkish citizen was killed and another severely injured when they were hit by stray bullets from Syria. The incidents were the most serious spillover of violence into Turkey in weeks and highlight the growing concern that Syria's civil war is dragging in neighboring states.
One of the victims, 17-year-old Turkish man Mahsun Ertuğrul, died last Wednesday after a stray bullet from Ras al-Ain hit him in the chest, while another teenager, Ahmet Gündüz, was severely injured after being hit by another stray bullet from the war-torn country. Gündüz was taken to a hospital in Ankara for treatment.
The Turkish army returned fire into Syrian territory after Ertuğrul was killed and more bullets were fired into Turkey throughout Wednesday.
The army, in a statement, confirmed that Ras al-Ain had fallen under the control of the PYD and that units in Cenkeser Border Post returned fire in accordance with Turkey's rules of engagement. It also said four bullets hit houses in Ceylanpınar during overnight clashes on Wednesday and that at least 10 bullets had hit the Ceylanpınar Police Department building.
Addressing the spillover effects of the Syrian crisis, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said Turkey would maintain its firm stance against any kind of terrorist dominance near its borders and called on the United Nations Security Council to act.
"This paints a striking picture of how much the crisis in Syria can affect us and our citizens. Once again, we call upon the international community to act. … If the UN Security Council is to do the job it is required to do, then the moment is now," Davutoğlu stated.
During the first months of the uprising, the Syrian mufti escaped his country and took refuge in Turkey. Assad had ordered Nakshbendi's execution after the mufti advised the embattled president to apologize to his people for his brutal crackdown and call elections. Speaking to Today's Zaman, Nakshbendi said the Kurdish militant group targets religious Kurds and Arabs and that the Assad regime is arming the group to “cause trouble” for Turkey.
The mufti added that the PYD forces, like Assad's troops, attack religious Kurds, and claimed the Kurdish group refrains from attacking Armenian and Jewish people in the province. “The PYD does not have extensive support from the people in the northern region. But they receive a great deal of ammunition from the regime,” he said.
According to some reports, the PYD retaliated by kidnapping several fighters, including the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS), one of the most powerful al-Qaeda-affiliated forces fighting in Syria. Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP the leader's nom-de-guerre is Abu Musab, though it was unclear whether he is Syrian or foreign.
After fighting rekindled on Saturday in Tel Abyad, which had been rather free of clashes for nine months, 15 Syrians injured during the clashes between the PYD and the al-Nusra Front were brought to the Turkish border town of Akçakale for treatment. The injured Syrians are being treated in Akçakale State Hospital, while those with severe injuries have been sent to well-equipped hospitals in nearby cities.
The PYD's capture of Tal Abyad came days after the militant group seized control of Ras al-Ain, a Syrian town near Turkey's Ceylanpınar district in Şanlıurfa province, and replaced the flag of opposition Free Syrian Army (FSA) with their own. The Syrian Kurdish militants won Ras al-Ain after days of clashes with fighters affiliated with the al-Qaeda linked al-Nusra Front. Just days before taking the town, the PYD declared it would establish autonomy in northern Syrian on July 19.
Activists said that the al-Nusra Front, which the PYD forced out of Ras al-Ain two days ago, counterattacked on Saturday in a bid to regain the key border town. It was reported that the al-Qaeda affiliated group put 3,000 fighters into massive attacks on PYD forces in Ras al-Ain and Tel Abyad. Residents of the two Turkish towns across the border reported hearing fire from mortars and heavy weapons.
Some reports said the al-Nusra Front joined forces with ISIS as well as the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham and Tawhid al-Asima brigades -- groups fighting against the Bashar al-Assad regime -- to take the northern line back from PYD forces. The al-Nusra Front reportedly retook four northern villages that were under the PYD control after the intense fighting on Saturday.
Syria's ethnic Kurdish minority has been alternately battling both Assad's troops and the opposition. Kurds claim to back the uprising, but opposition groups accuse them of making deals with the regime to ensure their security and autonomy during the conflict.
The PYD's capture of Ras al-Ain has fueled Ankara's fears that the emergence of an autonomous Kurdish region in Syria could embolden homegrown PKK terrorists fighting for autonomy in Turkey.
Recent bold moves along the Turkish border are also stoking security concerns in southern Turkish cities. On Saturday night, two anti-aircraft shells hit two separate garden walls in Ceylanpınar, putting town residents on red alert. No injuries were reported. Officials have asked Ceylanpınar residents to stay in their homes and not go outside unless necessary.
On Friday, Turkish warplanes took off from Diyarbakır and flew low over areas of the Turkish-Syrian border where clashes continue to inspect the area; authorities say they didn't violate Syrian airspace. The military has said it strengthened security in the area with armored vehicles.
Last Tuesday, stray bullets from Syria struck a police headquarters and several homes in Ceylanpınar, several hundred meters from the Syrian border.
Also Tuesday in Ceylanpınar, one Turkish citizen was killed and another severely injured when they were hit by stray bullets from Syria. The incidents were the most serious spillover of violence into Turkey in weeks and highlight the growing concern that Syria's civil war is dragging in neighboring states.
One of the victims, 17-year-old Turkish man Mahsun Ertuğrul, died last Wednesday after a stray bullet from Ras al-Ain hit him in the chest, while another teenager, Ahmet Gündüz, was severely injured after being hit by another stray bullet from the war-torn country. Gündüz was taken to a hospital in Ankara for treatment.
The Turkish army returned fire into Syrian territory after Ertuğrul was killed and more bullets were fired into Turkey throughout Wednesday.
The army, in a statement, confirmed that Ras al-Ain had fallen under the control of the PYD and that units in Cenkeser Border Post returned fire in accordance with Turkey's rules of engagement. It also said four bullets hit houses in Ceylanpınar during overnight clashes on Wednesday and that at least 10 bullets had hit the Ceylanpınar Police Department building.
Addressing the spillover effects of the Syrian crisis, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said Turkey would maintain its firm stance against any kind of terrorist dominance near its borders and called on the United Nations Security Council to act.
"This paints a striking picture of how much the crisis in Syria can affect us and our citizens. Once again, we call upon the international community to act. … If the UN Security Council is to do the job it is required to do, then the moment is now," Davutoğlu stated.
Ex-mufti of Syria's Hasaka region says PYD armed by Assad
İbrahim Nakshbendi, former mufti of the Syrian province of Hasaka on the Turkish-Syrian border, said on Sunday that PKK-affiliated PYD forces had been armed by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a bid to hurt Turkey.During the first months of the uprising, the Syrian mufti escaped his country and took refuge in Turkey. Assad had ordered Nakshbendi's execution after the mufti advised the embattled president to apologize to his people for his brutal crackdown and call elections. Speaking to Today's Zaman, Nakshbendi said the Kurdish militant group targets religious Kurds and Arabs and that the Assad regime is arming the group to “cause trouble” for Turkey.
The mufti added that the PYD forces, like Assad's troops, attack religious Kurds, and claimed the Kurdish group refrains from attacking Armenian and Jewish people in the province. “The PYD does not have extensive support from the people in the northern region. But they receive a great deal of ammunition from the regime,” he said.