US watchdog group: Turkey’s actions in Syria endanger religious diversity

The partial withdrawal of US troops from northeast Syria in October created a vacuum for religious repression, a bipartisan US agency says.
Turkish army tanks and armoured personnel carriers (APC) are seen near the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay province, Turkey January 23, 2018. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RC1FA0C88540
Turkish army tanks and armored personnel carriers are seen near the Turkish-Syrian border in Hatay province, Turkey, Jan. 23, 2018. - REUTERS/Umit Bektas
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Elizabeth Hagedorn
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A congressionally appointed watchdog body said today that Turkey and its proxies are curtailing the rights of religious minorities in northern Syria and will continue to do so if the United States doesn’t intervene to stop them. 

“The United States cannot look the other way as this disaster unfolds,” said Nadine Maenza, vice chair of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. 

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