Image: aa.com.tr
The Turkish military continue to target infrastructure in Kurdish-held areas in northern Syria in the framework of Operation Claw-Sword.
On December 9, several Turkish strikes targeted a key communication tower near the village of Saluk in the northern countryside of Raqqa, which is held by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The strikes didn’t result in any casualties. However, the Hawar News Agency reported that the strikes placed the communication tower out of service, disturbing mobile communication and internet service in the northern Raqqa countryside. Footage of the strikes was released by the agency, which is linked to the SDF.
Turkey launched Operation Claw-Sword on November 20 in response to the November 13 bombing in Istanbul. Ankara believes that the core faction of the SDF, the People’s Protection Units, was involved in the terrorist attack, which claimed the lives of six people and wounded 80 others, along with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party.
In the early days of the operation, the Turkish military targeted several oil and gas fields as well as electricity and water stations in SDF-held areas in northern Syria.
Senior Turkish officials, including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, warned that Operation Claw-Sword could soon morph into a ground offensive against the SDF. However, a recent decline in Turkish air and artillery strikes on northern Syria indicates that Ankara has put the offensive on halt.
Turkey faced much pressure from both the United States and Russia over Operation Claw-Sword. Despite of this, it is yet to conclude the operation.
Russia has reportedly offered Turkey a deal that would see the SDF withdrawing from two key towns in northern Syria, Manbij and Kobane, in exchange for ending Operation Claw-Sword. Ankara is currently studying the offer.
