Less than a day after President Trump announced a ceasefire in northern Syria, each side in the conflict charged the other with breaching the accord.
The Syrian Democratic Forces accused Turkey and its proxies of continuing military operations against Ras al-Ayn, a city on the Turkish-Syrian border, on Thursday. The group also claimed Turkey attacked three villages outside the zone.
“The guarantors of the ceasefire must carry out their responsibilities to rein in the Turks,” Syrian Democratic Forces Gen. Mazloum Kobane said in a tweet.
Turkey’s Defense Ministry responded hours later, claiming it was the Syrian Democratic Forces who violated the deal after injuring five Turkish troops in “drone, mortar and light weapon attacks.”
The claims come less than 24 hours after Trump announced that the temporary ceasefire reached last week would become permanent. Turkey told administration officials its forces would halt their offensive in Syria, and Kobane was “extremely thankful” for U.S. efforts, according to Trump. In return for Turkey’s agreement, Trump lifted sanctions imposed after it invaded Syria earlier this month, though he said he reserves the right to reimpose them should Turkey “fail to honor its obligations.”
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper condemned Turkey’s invasion on Thursday, warning it jeopardizes the progress the United States and the Syrian Democratic Forces have made against the Islamic State.
“Turkey put us all in a very terrible situation,” Esper said.
Turkish forces also have been accused of engaging in executions, torture, and other atrocities since the start of the invasion. Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. ambassador to NATO, on Wednesday demanded an investigation into Turkey’s alleged targeting of civilians with white phosphorus, a highly flammable chemical agent that can cause severe burns. Use of the chemical against human targets violates international conventions against chemical weapons.
“There were accusations of war crimes, which must be addressed,” Hutchison told reporters. “We cannot stand for that.”
Both Republicans and Democrats have criticized Trump’s decision to remove U.S. forces from northern Syria earlier this month, claiming it effectively gave Turkey a “green light” to attack Kurdish forces that supported the U.S. in the fight against ISIS.
Trump continued to defend his decision during Wednesday’s ceasefire announcement.
“After all of the precious blood and treasure America has poured into the deserts of the Middle East, I am committed to pursuing a different course, one that leads to victory for America,” Trump said. “Through much work, we have done things that everybody said couldn’t be done.
