The United States withdraws all remaining US soldiers from northern Syria. President Trump has ordered this. He wants to prevent the American Special Forces from getting involved in the fighting between the Turkish army and Kurdish militias.
The situation at the front is deteriorating with the hour. According to the Pentagon, the situation for the US soldiers is untenable. Earlier, the US already withdrew a small number of soldiers from Ain Issa. For days there was bombed by Turkish fighter planes.
Kurdish forces now report that at least 785 people have escaped from a Syrian in that village. It would be about a group of women and their children who are affiliated with the Islamic State, but also about a hundred IS fighters.
American Defense Minister Esper said that American troops could not have stopped the Turkish offensive in any way. Around 1,000 American soldiers now reside throughout Syria, most of them in the north of the country. When they leave is not yet clear.
According to the US, Kurdish-led SDF fighters are now seeking support from Russia and the Syrian regime. They would have asked them for help to beat back the Turkish army. Turkey has 15,000 soldiers on the Syrian border who receive support from the air.
Among reports of the first deaths, there are also reports of killed Kurdish reporters. ANHA correspondent Seed Ehmed died after the attack by the Turkish army on a civilian convoy en route to Serêkaniyê. Four journalists were injured, three of whom have since died.
The other three journalists are ANF correspondent Ersin Çaksu and the journalists Bircan Yıldız and Rojbin Ekinci.