US Still Backs Kurdish Forces in Syria Despite Demand for Kurds to Relocate

The United States will continue backing Kurdish fighters as a key member of the US-backed Syrian insurgency, despite ordering the Kurds to vacate a town during a Turkish incursion on Wednesday, US Department of State spokesperson Elizabeth Trudeau said in a briefing on Thursday.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Ankara announced on early Wednesday that Turkish forces, backed by US-led coalition aircraft, had begun a military operation dubbed Euphrates Shield to clear the Syrian border town of Jarabulus of militants from both Daesh and Syrian Kurdish fighters.

"It’s important to note that Kurdish forces are a critical component of the SDF [Syrian Democratic Forces]," Trudeau stated. "We’ll continue to support all components of the SDF, Arab, Kurd, Turkmen, all, as we look to pressure ISIL [Daesh] and ultimately liberate Raqqa."

According to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the operation in Jarabulus is aimed at neutralizing the threats posed by both Daesh and Kurdish militants in Syria, which Ankara considers to be linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is classified as a terrorists organization in Turkey. The Syrian Kurds and Damascus accused Ankara of violating the territorial integrity of the Arab republic.