ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—The Kurdish fighters of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) prepare for a decisive offensive that aims at driving out ISIS militants from the key towns of Jarablus and Manbaj in northwest Syria. The anticipated offensive will involve coalition air support as well as fighters from some 12 other groups known as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which also include the YPG. Sources told Rudaw that the operation will not include the town of Azaz, further west of Jarablus, due to an implicit deal with Turkey which has firmly opposed Kurdish advance to western corner of the country where the Turkish backed Syrian Free Army (SFA) are based. The SDF recaptured the October Dam west of Euphrates River from ISIS on January 26 and continued to push back militants further east and west of the river, but halted their advance as Turkish army started shelling the forces in the area. Ankara has been reluctant to allow YPG gain more grounds in areas close to the Turkish borders fearing it could further embolden guerrillas of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in Turkey. “There have been meetings between the HDS and coalition forces in Kobani about the possible offensive,” said Idris Naasan, a journalist in Kobani. Turkish media reported earlier that Ankara had agreed to the operation after it was established that the local Arab tribes taking part in the Manbaj offensive would be independent of the HDS and that Turkey would monitor their movements across the border.
