Turkish airstrikes and artillery fire continue to pound the Syrian border on Wednesday, with the Syrian media reporting eight civilians have already been killed. The Kurdish forces in the area reported three of their fighters were also slain.
Turkey, for its part, is reporting that the entire “safe zone” along the border has been declared “off-limits” to civilians. They have not reported at all on the casualties themselves.
President Trump promised to hold Turkey accountable and ensure that they protect civilians, and religious minorities. There is no sign that the US has acknowledged the casualties yet, let alone that they are liable to do anything to formally object to the deaths.
Though many Turkish airstrikes are targeting Kurdish YPG military positions around the safe zone, they also appear to be firing heavily into the populated towns and cities in the area. Saying the area is off-limits appears irrelevant, since the civilians there don’t have any obvious places to flee.
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