Turkish-backed Syrian opposition fighters deploy near the town of Ras al-Ayn, Syria, Friday, Oct. 19, 2019. Fighting between Turkey and Kurdish forces continued Friday in Ras al-Ayn despite a U.S.-brokered cease-fire that went into effect overnight. | AP
President Donald Trump said Friday that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had assured him that he wants the "ceasefire" with Kurdish militants in northern Syria to work.
Trump, in a series of tweets, said he had spoken to Erdogan and "he very much wants the ceasefire, or pause, to work."
"Likewise, the Kurds want it, and the ultimate solution, to happen," the US president said. "There is goodwill on both sides & a really good chance for success," he said.
"The US has secured the Oil, & the ISIS Fighters are double secured by Kurds & Turkey."
Trump also tweeted "DEFEAT TERRORISM!" in all capital letters in response to a tweet by Erdogan saying "Mr. President, many more lives will be saved when we defeat terrorism, which is humanity's arch enemy."
DEFEAT TERRORISM! https://t.co/8WbnLPgWIK— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 18, 2019
Turkey had agreed to suspend its offensive for five days in northern Syria while Kurdish fighters withdraw from the area, after high-stakes talks with US Vice President Mike Pence in Ankara.
Monitoring agencies, however, say Turkey has already violated the ceasefire, with an airstrike killing 14 civilians on Friday according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The SOHR also said that eight Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters were killed.
Kurdish fighters, part of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), told CNN that five of their soldiers were killed by Turkish shelling and attacks by Syrian rebel proxies on Friday.
AFP reported an SDF spokesperson's statement, "Despite the agreement to halt the fighting, air and artillery attacks continue to target the positions of fighters, civilian settlements and the hospital" in Ras al-Ain, he said.
AP that fighting continued in the border town of Ras al-Ayn on Friday, which was surrounded by Turkish-backed forces prior to the ceasefire, and which has SDF fighters inside who engaged in clashes throughout the day.
Under the deal, Kurdish forces are required to withdraw from a border strip 32 kilometres (20 miles) deep, clearing the way for a "safe zone" sought by Turkey.
Earlier Friday, Erdogan warned that Ankara would resume military operations against Kurdish forces in Syria if they did not withdraw from a "safe zone" along the Turkey-Syria border.
Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council issued a statement on Friday saying the US-Turkey deal was not a ceasefire. “The so-called ceasefire is not what we expected. In fact, it’s not a ceasefire, it’s a demand of capitulation of the Kurds,” Tusk said at a press event in Brussels.
With inputs from PTI
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