Death toll climbs in second day of Turkish offensive
Both Turkish and Syrian civilians were reported killed as Turkey pressed a cross-border assault on a Kurdish militia and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan struck a defiant tone in the face of international criticism.
ISTANBUL — Turkish artillery pounded Kurdish militant targets in northern Syria for a second day on Thursday, with both sides reporting civilians were killed, and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan slammed Western nations for failing to support the incursion into a neighboring country.
Turkey’s attack on a roughly 120-kilometer (75-mile) stretch of Syrian territory south of its border has sparked an international backlash, with the United States — which has supported the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) for half a decade in the fight against the Islamic State — threatening economic sanctions and the European Union demanding Turkey halt the military action or risk unleashing more turmoil in the region.
![Smoke billows from the Babasi oil facility in the countryside of al-Qahtaniya in Syria's Kurdish-controlled northeastern Hasakeh province on October 6, 2023 following a Turkish strike. (Photo by Delil souleiman / AFP) / "The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by Delil souleiman has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [BABASI] instead of [BASBASI]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all your online services and delete it (them) from your serve](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2023-10/GettyImages-1709016702.jpg?h=8f404aa9&itok=3DbBgJnW)
