The Oct. 25 bombing by President Bashar al-Assad’s forces supporting the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) against the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), which is leading Operation Euphrates Shield, is symptomatic of the struggle currently taking place in northern Syria on the al-Bab/Manbij axis. It also underlines the geopolitical conflict pitting regional powers in Syria as well as Iraq.
Launched Aug. 24, the Euphrates Shield offensive gives Turkey direct control on the course of events in northern Syria. “The Euphrates Shield consists of a coalition of Arab rebels that conquered Jarablus and other border areas with help of the Turkish army, progressing south,” according to an Oct. 5 piece by Syria expert Fabrice Balanche for The Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
In an interview with Al-Monitor, Sinan Hatahet, a researcher from the Turkey-based think tank Omran Dirasat, estimated the coalition’s forces to be over 2,500 fighters, which include the Turkmen unit (the Sultan Murad brigade) and a coalition of Arab fighters. The Euphrates Shield forces now control an area of roughly 1,270 square kilometers (490 square miles) in northern Syria.
The Turkey-backed August offensive was recently extended to the Syrian town of al-Bab, according to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who said Oct. 22 that these forces will press on the Syrian town.
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