At least 31 people, the vast majority of whom were Kurdish fighters and Syrian soldiers, were killed in raids by the Turkish army launched on Saturday night against Kurdish regions in northern Syria, according to a tally provided on Sunday by an NGO and cited by France Presse. writes Agerpres.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of TurkeyPhoto: APAImages / Shutterstock Editorial / Profimedia

The autonomous Kurdish authorities reported at least 29 dead – 11 civilians, 15 pro-regime fighters, two bunker guards and one Kurdish fighter.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (OSHO), which has an extensive network of sources in Syria, could not confirm any civilian casualties.

He reported a series of airstrikes carried out on Saturday night and before dawn on Sunday by the Turkish army in the provinces of Raqqa and Hassakeh (northeast) and Aleppo (north), which cost the lives of 18 Kurdish fighters and members of local forces. allies, as well as 12 Syrian soldiers. There were 40 wounded.

The NGO also announced the death of journalist Issam Abdallah, a Syrian correspondent for the Kurdish Press Agency.

The official Syrian news agency Sana confirmed the death of several Syrian soldiers, without specifying their number.

The strikes mainly targeted the city of Kobani (in the north) and its surroundings near the border with Turkey, especially grain silos near Al Malikiyya (in the northeast) and a power plant located in an area controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces, which is dominated by Kurds Forces (SDF).

Turkey announced the launch of this air operation in northern Iraq and neighboring Syria, targeting several regions under the control of Syrian Kurdish forces and the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which Ankara blames for an attack that killed six people in Istanbul on November 13. .

“These attacks of the Turkish occupation state will not go unanswered. At the right time and in the right place, we will respond with force and effectiveness,” the FSB responded in a statement.

The Turkish operation, called Sword Claw, is aimed at “eliminating terrorist attacks from northern Iraq and Syria, ensuring border security and eliminating terrorism from its source,” the Turkish Defense Ministry said.

Turkey, whose soldiers are present in areas of northern Syria, has been threatening to launch a new offensive against the SDF since May, considering them “terrorists”.