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Turkish-backed militant groups, commonly referred as the Free Syrian Army (FSA), are preparing to storm remaining positions of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) south of the city of Afrin, according to pro-FSA sources.
The Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and the FSA captured the city of Afrin from the YPG last weekend. Since then, Turksih forces have been securing their recent gains in northwestern Syria.
On the same time, few reports have appeared about clashes between the FSA and the YPG near the village of Halisa. This may also indicate that the FSA and the TAF are aiming to capture the remaining positions of the YPG in the area.
The town of Tell Rifaat has been for a long time a core of the tensions between the YPG and the FSA in northern Aleppo. So, the FSA leadership will be happy to use any opportunity to capture it.
The problem is that the YPG has recently handed over a number of checkpoints in the area to the pro-government National Defense Forces and the Syrian Arab Army. So, the FSA advance on Tell Rifaat may trigger a conflict between Turkish and Syrian forces in the area.
