Turkey’s strikes in Syria put US troops in danger, Pentagon says
A Turkish drone strike on a top Kurdish commander’s headquarters came within 130 meters of US troops in Syria on Tuesday.
The Pentagon warned on Wednesday that Turkey’s airstrikes against Kurdish forces in northeast Syria endanger US troops and threaten to undermine years of progress in the war against the Islamic State.
Press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the Defense Department “is deeply concerned” by escalating attacks in Syria, Iraq and Turkey, but did not specify which parties were responsible.
“Recent airstrikes in Syria directly threatened the safety of US personnel who are working … with local partners to defeat ISIS and maintain custody of more than ten thousand ISIS detainees,” Ryder said in a press release.
Why it matters: Ankara launched a new air campaign before dawn on Sunday that has hit Kurdish militia sites and civilian infrastructure across northeast Syria and northern Iraq.
