The United States has been alarmed by Turkey's offensive against Kurdish forces, which Washington has backed in its bid to destroy Islamic State. Turkish warplanes renewed air strikes on Islamic State sites in northern Syria on Friday, CNN Turk reported, the latest attacks since Turkish-backed forces began the incursion on Aug. 24. Erdogan told a news conference early on Friday that the operation dubbed "Euphrates Shield" had been successful in clearing Islamic State and Kurdish YPG from a 400-sq-km (150-square mile) area. The Kurdish YPG is part of a broader, US-backed coalition in Syria called the Syrian Democratic Forces. Washington has supported the group in its battle against Islamic State but Ankara regards it as an extension of the PKK, the outlawed Kurdish militant group in Turkey.

Source: bd News24 September 02, 2016 09:56 UTC