(Zaman Al Wasl)- At least 13 people have been killed Friday in the northeastern city of Hasaka as clashes entesifed between regime forces and the U.S.-backed Kurdish militias, activists said.
The Syrian regime carried out a second day of airstrikes and artillery bombardment, causing thousands of civilians to evacuate Kurdish areas of the city. Dozens of civilians have been killed over the last 48 hours.
Two regime aircraft tried on Friday to pass through the airspace around Hasaka, but left without incident when they were met by coalition fighter jets. The coalition fighter jets were F-22 aircraft and came within 1 mile (1.6 km)of the regime planes.
Kurdish authorities evacuated thousands of civilians from Hasaka following regime air strikes, a spokesman for the YPG militia, an integral part of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said.
Hasaka is divided into zones of Kurdish and Syrian government control and fighting between them has killed dozens of civilians in the past 48 hours, YPG spokesman Redur Xelil said.
Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, has focused mostly on fighting Sunni Arab rebels who have been battling to oust him in western Syria with support from countries including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The YPG has meanwhile prioritized carving out and safeguarding predominantly Kurdish regions of northern Syria. The group has ties to Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels in Turkey.
While the YPG controls most of the northeast, the Syrian government has maintained footholds in the cities of Hasaka and Qamishli at the border with Turkey.
The SDF seizure of Manbij from Islamic State last week raised the prospect of possible advances towards al-Bab, near Aleppo.
The U.S.-led coalition sent aircraft into Hasaka on Thursday in a "very unusual" move to protect American special operation ground forces from attacks by regime jets, a Pentagon official said on Friday.
Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters the coalition aircraft reached the area around the city of Hasaka as the two Syrian SU-24s were leaving, and the U.S. special operation forces were in the area where the strikes were taking place. He said the Syrian planes did not respond to efforts by ground forces to contact them. (With Reuters)
The Syrian regime carried out a second day of airstrikes and artillery bombardment, causing thousands of civilians to evacuate Kurdish areas of the city. Dozens of civilians have been killed over the last 48 hours.
Two regime aircraft tried on Friday to pass through the airspace around Hasaka, but left without incident when they were met by coalition fighter jets. The coalition fighter jets were F-22 aircraft and came within 1 mile (1.6 km)of the regime planes.
Kurdish authorities evacuated thousands of civilians from Hasaka following regime air strikes, a spokesman for the YPG militia, an integral part of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), said.
Hasaka is divided into zones of Kurdish and Syrian government control and fighting between them has killed dozens of civilians in the past 48 hours, YPG spokesman Redur Xelil said.
Bashar al-Assad, backed by Russia and Iran, has focused mostly on fighting Sunni Arab rebels who have been battling to oust him in western Syria with support from countries including Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The YPG has meanwhile prioritized carving out and safeguarding predominantly Kurdish regions of northern Syria. The group has ties to Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) rebels in Turkey.
While the YPG controls most of the northeast, the Syrian government has maintained footholds in the cities of Hasaka and Qamishli at the border with Turkey.
The SDF seizure of Manbij from Islamic State last week raised the prospect of possible advances towards al-Bab, near Aleppo.
The U.S.-led coalition sent aircraft into Hasaka on Thursday in a "very unusual" move to protect American special operation ground forces from attacks by regime jets, a Pentagon official said on Friday.
Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters the coalition aircraft reached the area around the city of Hasaka as the two Syrian SU-24s were leaving, and the U.S. special operation forces were in the area where the strikes were taking place. He said the Syrian planes did not respond to efforts by ground forces to contact them. (With Reuters)
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