Syria
Smoke billows in the distance after a suspected Turkish drone strike targeted the Hasaka-Tel Tamr road on October 5, 2023. Photo: ANHA
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - At least three civilians were injured when a suspected Turkish drone struck the city of Hasaka in northeast Syria (Rojava) on Thursday morning, local media reported, marking the second strike in 24 hours amid increased hostilities.
The strike targeted an area north of Hasaka city on the road with Tel Tamr, and “three civilians were injured according to preliminary information,” reported Hawar News Agency, affiliated with the Kurdish administration in Rojava.
It is the second drone to target Hasaka city in under 24 hours, after a Wednesday strike injured four civilians.
Turkish forces frequently conduct drone strikes on targets in northern Syria on the grounds that they have links with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and pose a threat to Turkey.
The PKK is an armed group struggling for the increased rights of Kurds in Turkey and designated a terrorist organization by Ankara, who considers Rojava’s People’s Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as the Syrian front for the PKK.
Hostilities have surged in northern Syria recently following an attack claimed by the PKK outside Turkey’s interior ministry in Ankara that injured two security officers, with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warning that all infrastructure and energy facilities linked to the YPG in Rojava will be Turkey’s “legitimate targets.”
On Wednesday, the US said that it “remains concerned” about the escalation of hostilities in northern Syria after Turkey intensified its aerial campaign against the YPG in Rojava.
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