On March 5, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister and government spokesman Bekir Bozdag said almost a half of the area that Operation Olive Branch aims in Afrin had been captured by Turkish forces.
“In Operation Olive Branch, so far 112 villages, 30 critical positions, and a total of 142 spots have been taken under control,” he said.
This map provides a general look at the military situation in the Syrian area of Afrin. The Turkish Army and Turkish-backed militant groups have further advanced north and northwest of the YPG-held city of Afrin. However, they have not been able to capture even a close to a half othe YPG-held area in northeastern Syria. This allows to suggest two explanatinos of Bozdag’s statement:
- Turksih forces are not aiming to capture the city of Afrin;
- Bozdag has some own “secret” vision of the situation in Afrin.
Click to see the full-size map
