Kurds accuse US of betrayal as Turkey prepares to invade Syria

Syria’s Kurds have accused the US of turning its back on its allies as American troops began pulling back from positions in north-eastern Syria ahead of an expected Turkish assault.
Syrian Kurds gather around a US armoured vehicle during a demonstration against Turkish threats. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty ImagesSyrian Kurds gather around a US armoured vehicle during a demonstration against Turkish threats. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images
Syrian Kurds gather around a US armoured vehicle during a demonstration against Turkish threats. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images

Syrian Kurdish fighters warned that Washington’s abrupt decision to stand aside – announced by the White House on Sunday – will overturn years of achievements in the battle against militants from so-called Islamic State .

In a strongly worded statement, they accused Washington of failing to abide by its commitments to its key allies.

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There was no immediate confirmation from the White House of US troops clearing positions in areas in northern Syria.

Syrian Kurdish women carry flags and banners as they demonstrate against Turkish threats to launch a military operation on their region. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty ImagesSyrian Kurdish women carry flags and banners as they demonstrate against Turkish threats to launch a military operation on their region. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images
Syrian Kurdish women carry flags and banners as they demonstrate against Turkish threats to launch a military operation on their region. Picture: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images

However, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said American troops have started pulling back and a video posted by a Kurdish news agency showed a convoy of American armoured vehicles apparently heading away from the border area of Tal Abyad.

Mr Erdogan spoke hours after the White House said US forces in north-eastern Syria will move aside and clear the way for an expected Turkish assault – raising concerns about the fate of Kurdish fighters who fought alongside American forces in the years-long battle to defeat IS.

“Following our conversation last night [with US president Donald Trump], the withdrawal has started as expressed by the president,” the Turkish leader said.

Mr Erdogan did not elaborate on the planned Turkish incursion but said Turkey was determined to halt what it perceives as threats from the Syrian Kurdish fighters.

The White House, in a statement that was silent on the fate of Kurds, said US troops “will not support or be involved in the operation” and “will no longer be in the immediate area” in northern Syria. There are about 1,000 American troops in northern Syria, and a senior US official said they will pull back from the area – and potentially depart the country entirely, should widespread fighting break out between Turkish and Kurdish forces.

The White House statement on Sunday also said Turkey will take custody of foreign fighters captured in the US-led campaign against IS who have been held by the Kurdish forces.

The Kurds have custody of thousands of captured IS militants.

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They include about 2,500 highly dangerous foreign fighters from Europe and elsewhere – their native countries have been reluctant to take them back – and about 10,000 captured fighters from Syria and Iraq.

Kurdish officials have expressed concerns of a possible breakout by IS prisoners in case of fighting in the area.

Asked about the White House comments, Mr Erdogan said that both Turkey and the US were working separately to see “what steps can be taken” so that foreign fighters in prison can be repatriated.

“This is being worked on,” he said.

Mr Erdogan has threatened for months to launch the military operation across the border.

He views the Syria Kurdish forces as terrorists and a threat to his country as Ankara has struggled with a Kurdish insurgency within Turkey.

In the US, Republicans and Democrats have warned that allowing the Turkish attack could lead to a massacre of the Kurds and send a troubling message to American allies across the globe.

The Syrian Democratic Forces, as the Kurdish-led forces are known, said the American military pullout began first from areas along the Syria-Turkey border.

The Syrian Kurdish Hawar news agency and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also said American troops were evacuating positions near the towns of Ras al-Ayn and Tal Abyad yesterday.