Over 100 Killed in Recent Clashes in Northern Syria

A war monitoring group announced on Sunday that over 100 fighters have been killed in the past two days in northern Syria during clashes between Turkey-backed groups and Syrian Kurdish forces. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that since Friday evening, fighting in several villages around the city of 'Manbij' has resulted in 101 deaths, including 85 members of Turkey-backed groups and 16 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dominated by Kurds. The Syrian Democratic Forces stated that they have repelled 'all attacks by Turkish mercenaries supported by drones and Turkish aviation.' Turkey-backed groups in northern Syria resumed their war against the SDF as the Islamist-led insurgents began their assault that led to the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad in just 11 days. They managed to take the cities of 'Manbij' and 'Tal Rifaat' in northern Aleppo province from the control of the SDF. These clashes have continued since then with heavy casualties. According to Rami Abdulrahman, head of the Observatory, Turkey-backed groups aim to capture the cities of Kobani and Tal Abyad before moving towards Raqqa. The Syrian Democratic Forces control vast areas of northeastern Syria and parts of Deir ez-Zor province in the east, where Kurds established an autonomous administration after the retreat of government forces during the civil war that began in 2011. This group, which enjoys U.S. support, took control of many of its current areas, including Raqqa, after seizing it from Islamic State militants. Ankara views the Syrian Democratic Forces as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought against insurgents in southeastern Turkey for decades and is designated as a terrorist organization by the Turkish government. The Turkish army regularly conducts operations against Kurdish fighters in neighboring Syria and Iraq, accusing them of links to the PKK. Ahmad al-Shara, the new ruler of Syria and head of the Islamist group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, previously stated that the Syrian Democratic Forces would be integrated into the future army of the country.