US Setting Up More Military Bases in Raqqa Near Border with Turkey

Rasa - The US army set up two more military bases in Syria's Raqqa province near the border with Turkey as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dispatched military convoys to the region to confront an impending invasion of the Turkish army.

News ID: 442137

Date: 17 December 2018 - 09:42

RNA - "The US military bases have been built in the surroundings of Tal Abyaz city in Northern Raqqa near the Syria-Turkey border as the Turkish army is readying for military assault on Eastern Euphrates," the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said.

Meantime, the Syrian army continued its military advances in other parts of Syria over the past 24 hours.

Tens of terrorists were killed and dozens more were injured during the Syrian army's operations in provinces across Syria.

Raqqa

The US army set up two more military bases in Syria's Raqqa province near the border with Turkey as the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dispatched military convoys to the region to confront an impending invasion of the Turkish army.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR)said  the US military bases have been built in the surroundings of Tal Abyaz city in Northern Raqqa near the Syria-Turkey border as the Turkish army is readying for military assault on Eastern Euphrates.

The SOHR noted that the US military bases have been set up in Tal Rakbeh and al-Jeib regions in the surrounding areas of Tal Abyaz. The source recalled that the US has established three military bases in Raqqa province over the past 20 days.

The field sources, meantime, said that the SDF has dispatched military convoys comprising hundreds of its fighters together with heavy military hardware, including tanks and artillery units to Tal Abyaz region in Northern Raqqa and Ain al-Arab in Northern Aleppo.

The Turkish army has also dispatched a new military convoy to the city of Jilianbiner near the border with Ras al-Ain in Northwestern Hasaka.

The Turkish army has also sent several military convoys to the border regions with Syria, specially Hatay and Kelis, in recent days.

Hasaka

A large number of Syrian Democratic Forces have defected their ranks and started fleeing Northern Syria after Ankara announced that it is preparing for a major military invasion of Northern Syria.

"Tens of SDF fighters have defected and fled in several regions of Raqqa and Hasaka provinces," field sources in Northern Syria reported.

The sources pointed to the defection of a group of SDF forces from al-Hos village in Eastern Raqqa, and said that a new wave of arrests of SDF members has occurred in the surrounding areas of the city of Ras al-Ain in Northwestern Hasaka after defection of their comrades in Raqqa.

Meantime, a number of SDF members have surrendered themselves to the Turkish army in al-Mobarakieh village East of Ras al-Ain city in Northwestern Hasaka, the sources said.

The sources, meantime, unveiled that the defection of the US-backed militants from their ranks has created rifts in several border regions with Syria near Ras al-Ain in Hasaka, Quntara in Soluk region East of Tal Abyaz in Northern Raqqa.

Aleppo

The Turkish Army targeted and pounded the military positions of the Kurdish forces in Northern Aleppo near Syria's border with Turkey as heavy clashes have intensified between the two sides there.

Sources close to militants in Northern Syria said that the Turkish army's artillery units pounded several military positions of the Kurds in Zour Moghar and Shoyoukh Foqani in the surrounding areas of Ain al-Arab in Northern Aleppo and near the border with Turkey, destroying one of their military positions.

The sources, meantime, pointed to the Kurdish forces' attacks on the Ankara-backed militants' positions from Harbal, Sheikh Issa and Um Khosh regions in Ma'areh region, and reiterated that intense fighting has broken out between the two sides in the surrounding areas of Tal Rafat city.

The sources close to the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) also reported that the Kurdish forces targeted and pounded one of the positions of the Turkish army in Kimar village in Shirava region of Afrin in Western Aleppo, which resulted in the destruction of the military point and death of five Turkish soldiers.

Hama

Heavy clashes broke out between the Syrian Army and Tahrir al-Sham Hay'at (the Levant Liberation Board or the Al-Nusra Front) and its allied terrorist group in Northern Hama.

According to Fars News Agency, the Tahrir al-Sham Haya'at and its allies suffered heavy losses and casualties in clashes with the Syrian army in the surrounding areas of Jourin town.

The Syrian government troops pounded the terrorists' military positions with missiles and artillery shells near the town of al-Ziyareh.

Meantime, field sources reported that the terrorists' military positions were destroyed and a large number of terrorists were killed in the army attacks.

The Syrian army units, meantime, attacked the terrorists' movements in the city of Mahradeh in Northern Hama in response to terrorists' attacks in al-Sakhar region, destroying their military positions and killing a number of them.

In Northern Hama, the Syrian government troops also engaged in heavy clashes with Tahrir al-Sham terrorists who attacked the Syrian army's military positions from al-Boyezeh, Markabeh and al-Sarmanieh villages. The Syrian army inflicted heavy losses on terrorists in Northern Hama.

In the meantime, the Syrian army's artillery units pounded the movements and military positions of the terrorists in the towns of Latmin, al-Sayyad, Kafar Zita and the surrounding areas of Mourek.

847/940