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Conflict in Syria

Turkey, Syrian opposition kill 343 terrorists in Afrin — General Staff

On January 20, Turkey’s General Staff announced launching Operation Olive Branch against the Kurdish self-defense forces near Afrin

© Valery Sharifulin/TASS

MOSCOW, January 26. /TASS/. Turkey’s Armed Forces and its ally, the opposition’s Free Syrian Army, have neutralized 343 members of terrorist groups since the beginning of Operation Olive Branch in Afrin, northern Syria, Turkey’s General Staff said in a statement on Friday.

Read also

Russia maintains contact with Syrian and Turkish leaders over Afrin

"According to sources in the region, at present at least 343 members of terrorist groups have been neutralized during Operation Olive Branch. The operation is carried out as scheduled," the military said.

The Kurdish People's Protection Units, the Democratic Union Party (PYD), the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and the Islamic State (outlawed in Russia) are labeled as terrorist groups by the Turkish General Staff.

Last night, 13 warplanes of Turkey’s Air Force destroyed 23 terrorist targets, including shelters, ammunition depots and firing points, the statement said.

On January 20, Turkey’s General Staff announced launching Operation Olive Branch against the Kurdish self-defense forces near Afrin, which is home to about 1.5 million Syrian Kurds and refuges from other Syrian regions. According to official data, some 10 fighters of the Turkish Army and the Free Syrian Army died during the battles. Besides, Turkish settlements near the border come under mortar fire from Syria, and several people died and more than 50 others were wounded there.

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