Turkish President Erdogan wants Syrian government forces to move out of areas near the Turkish border so he can resettle up to 2 million refugees there, his spokesman tells The AP.
In this image provided by Turkish Red Crescent, Turkish Red Crescent vehicles arrive to deliver aid to Syrians in Ras Al-Ayn, Syria, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019. Turkish Red Crescent says it has delivered humanitarian aid for 2000 people in Ras Al-Ayn, including flour with other food and hygiene materials to follow.
Erdogan’s spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin said Ankara does not want either Syrian forces nor Kurdish fighters in the border area because refugees would not go back to areas under their control.“This is one of the topics that we will discuss with the Russians, because, again, we are not going to force any refugees to go to anywhere they don’t want to go,” he said. “We want to create conditions that will be suitable for them to return where they will feel safe.
Redur Khalil, a senior Syrian Democratic Forces official, told the AP that the withdrawal will take place once Turkey allows the Kurdish-led force to evacuate its fighters and civilians from Ras al-Ayn, a border town under siege by Turkish-backed forces. He said that Kurdish-led force was preparing plans to conduct that evacuation on Sunday, if there are no further delays.
Two days into the cease-fire, the border town of Ras al-Ayn has been the sticking point in moving forward. Turkish officials denied violating the cease-fire or impeding the fighters’ withdrawal, blaming the continued violence on the Kurds.
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