11:59 pm
Yazda warns of ‘serious risk’ to Afrin’s Yezidis
Twenty-one villages that are home to Yezidis in the Afrin area are at “serious risk” because of Turkey’s military operation in the region, Yezidi advocacy organization Yazda warned in a press release Tuesday.
The group said they will hold Turkey and Free Syrian Army militias responsible “if any persecution of cleansing act takes place against our people.”
Yazda noted that the Yezidi minority has already suffered over the past decade, with its population dropping from 90,000 in 2011 to fewer than 15,000 today after persecution and forced displacement.
Yazda called on the United Nations, United States, and Russia to protect the Yezidi villages.
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11:39 pm
Turkey confirms death of another soldier
One Turkish soldier was killed and another injured in western Afrin on Tuesday, Turkey’s military announced Tuesday evening.
The military claims to have killed 260 “terrorists” so far in its operation in Afrin, naming PKK, YPG, PYD, and ISIS.
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9:00 pm
Afrin death toll stands at 106: conflict monitor
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimates that 106 persons have been killed in the Afrin area since the start of Turkey’s military offensive. The conflict monitor reported on Tuesday that 23 civilians were among the casualties, 38 SDF fighters, two Turkish soldiers, and at least 43 Syrian militiamen backed by Turkey.
The SDF reported the deaths of four civilians – two children and two women – and another 10 wounded in the town of Jindaris, in southwest Afrin on Tuesday.
Shiyar Khalil, a Syrian journalist from Afrin now based in the Kurdistan Region, confirmed to Rudaw English the casualties in Jindaris.
Turkish media reported that two rockets fired across the border from Syria hit Kilis and Hatay provinces, which border Afrin.
Kilis’ governor said there were no casualties. In Hatay, there was material damage, but no casualties reported, according to state-run Anadolu Agency.
Turkish officials have said that cross-border attacks are one of the reasons why they launched their operation. Kurdish forces have denied they have attacked Turkey from Afrin and maintain they have only acted in self-defence.
While stating that the United States takes “very seriously Turkey’s legitimate security concerns,” Defence Secretary James Mattis criticized Turkey’s military offensive as a distraction from the war on terror.
“The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area of Syria. It distracts from international efforts to ensure the defeat of ISIS, and this could be exploited by ISIS and al-Qaida,” he said on Tuesday.
He urged Turkey to exercise “restraint in their military actions and rhetoric and ensure its operations are limited in scope and duration.”
He noted that Afrin had been a hub for humanitarian aid delivery and returning refugees, “The Turkish incursion disrupts that effort.”
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3:45 p.m.
Turkey confirms second soldier killed in Turkey's Afrin operation; YPG claims 17 including FSA fighters
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted that a second officer was killed on Tuesday.
“We will not leave the blood of our martyrs on the ground and will continue our struggle until we root out terror," said the FM.
Another Turkish officer was killed Monday, and laid to rest in Ankara on Tuesday at a ceremony attended by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The YPG announced on Tuesday they have killed 17 Turkish soldiers and Turkish-backed proxies, the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA).
Turkey officially announced its Operation Olive Branch on Sunday, but there were air strikes on Saturday.
12:45 p.m.
Southwestern Afrin attacked by at least 15 mortar rounds
Marwan Hanna, an activist in Afrin, told Rudaw that Turkish artillery units started shelling southwestern parts of Afrin on Tuesday morning.
An eyewitness told Hanna that at least 15 mortars landed in a village in the Jandaris district.
The eyewitness claimed that there were casualties from the bombings.
Turkey has access to southern and western Afrin because the Turkish province of Hatay flanks Syria's international border.
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12:20 p.m.
Clashes continue between Kurdish forces, Turkish proxies on Tuesday
Heavy clashes are underway on Tuesday between the mostly-Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces and the Turkish army in the vicinities of Hammam village in the Jandaris area, reported Syria-based Ronahi TV, media close to the YPG.
Jandaris is a district and city in southwestern Afrin.
Turkey is supporting the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) against the PYD's armed wing, the People's Protection Units (YPG).
The YPG has served as the backbone of the US-led international anti-ISIS coalition; however, the coalition told Rudaw English on January 16 that it "does not operate in Afrin, Syria."
11:45 a.m.
YPG regains control of Mount Barsaya in northeastern Afrin
Al-Masdar News reported from Syria that the YPG launched a counter-attack against the FSA, pushing pro-Ankara rebels to abandon a key piece of high-ground they had earlier taken, citing military sources.
Masdar reportedly was told by Turkish and Kurdish sources that the YPG drove Turkey-led forces early Tuesday morning from Mount Barsaya after the latter captured the position momentarily on Monday.
The strategic hilltop overlooks Syria’s Azaz and Turkey’s Kilis province.
The FSA fighters were unable to fortify their positions before the Kurdish counter-attack, according to Al-Masdar.
A journalist for Al-Masdar reported that the Turkish military and FSA have not managed to capture any important or valuable areas in Afrin.
The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), which monitors the conflict in Syria, reported late Monday that the SDF had restored control of the strategic highlands of Barsaya.
SOHR stated late Monday it has documented the deaths of 24 civilians (six children and a woman) in Afrin, since Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch on Saturday.
