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Syrian Kurdish commander wants peace with Turkey, but will 'fully' resist attack

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Syrian Democratic Forces head Mazlum Kobane said he expects a Turkish attack in February, and warned Ankara should not punish Syria’s Kurds over its own failure to resolve its own domestic issues.
DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images
Mazlum Kobane, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), speaks with AFP during an interview in the countryside outside the northwestern Syrian city of Hasakah, in the province of the same name, on Jan. 24, 2019. - DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP via Getty Images
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Amberin Zaman
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Turkey has renewed threats to launch another ground offensive in northeast Syria.

Speaking to reporters on Jan. 14, Turkish presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin said a new operation against the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was possible “any time.” Turkey has mounted three major attacks against the Kurdish-led force since 2016 on the grounds that it is closely linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants that are at war with Turkey. Turkey wants to establish a “security belt” 30 kilometers (18 miles) deep along its 900-kilometer (560-mile) border with Syria.

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