Turkey Claims to Have Killed 23 Kurdish Militants in Syria

Turkey announced on Sunday that it has killed 23 Kurdish militants in northern Syria, marking the latest in a series of attacks against them that have continued since Donald Trump took office as President of the United States last month. According to Reuters, the Turkish Ministry of Defense stated that "these militants belong to the Syrian Kurdish YPG [People's Protection Units] and the illegal Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK." Turkey equates the PKK and the YPG, while the United States views them as separate groups, designating the PKK as a "terrorist" organization but treating the YPG as its main allies in Syria in the campaign against the Islamic State. Turkey has long urged Washington to withdraw its support for the YPG and has expressed hope that Trump would reconsider the policies of the previous administration under Joe Biden. Turkish forces and their allies in Syria have repeatedly clashed with Kurdish militants since the ousting of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in December. Previously, Turkey had also announced on Tuesday, January 29, that it had eliminated 13 Kurdish militants in Iraq and northern Syria. Turkey considers the Syrian Democratic Forces, which control about a quarter of Syrian territory, a threat to its national security, stating that they must either disarm or face military confrontation. On the other hand, the Syrian Democratic Forces and the new Syrian government have disagreements over how to integrate the Kurdish-led forces into the new country's security apparatus. The Syrian Democratic Forces claim they do not agree with the new Syrian Ministry of Defense's plan to integrate all armed groups in the country and have no intention of dissolving their forces.