Free Syrian Military neighborhood ‘captures’ Afrin city

Turkish forces and the Free Syrian Military (FSA) opposition neighborhood bear captured town centre of Afrin in Syria, which used to be beforehand controlled by Kurdish opponents, Turkish protection power forces and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan talked about.

« The Turkish armed forces and Free Syrian Military bear taken the abet a watch on of Afrin’s city centre, » the Turkish protection power talked about in a tweet on Sunday, adding that specialists were looking for landmines and various forms of explosive traps in the condominium.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also presented that Turkey-backed forces took total abet a watch on of town centre at 8:30am native time (05:00 GMT).

The armed forces shared a video in a separate tweet allegedly showing the Turkish flag hoisted in town centre of Afrin.

Different movies and shots shared by the Turkish-backed FSA opponents on social media confirmed them in residential streets, making victory signs and waving flags. Al Jazeera cannot independently verify their authenticity.

Afrin şehir merkezinden ilk görüntüler. pic.twitter.com/DQdGzWSAmr

— TSK (@TSKGnkur) March 18, 2018

Turkey – along with the FSA – in January launched a protection power operation into Afrin in the northwest of Syria to conquer the US-backed Kurdish Folk’s Protection (YPG) opponents arrive its border.

Turkey considers the Kurdish Democratic Union Social gathering (PYD) in Syria and its armed cruise YPG to be « terrorist teams » with ties to the banned Kurdistan Team’ Social gathering (PKK).

The PKK has waged a decades-prolonged armed fight towards the Turkish advise that has killed tens of thousands of folks.

The PYD/YPG has reach to abet a watch on comely swaths of northern Syria, together with Afrin, through the Syrian warfare, severely thru battling towards the Islamic Disclose of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) neighborhood in an US-backed umbrella organisation named Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The US red meat up for SDF has infuriated Turkey and created the continuing diplomatic crisis between the two NATO allies.

Turkish military shared on Twitter alleged pictures from the Afrin city centre after it used to be captured [Turkish armed forces/Twitter]