Syrian Kurdistan

Syrian Arab and Kurdish civilians flee with their belongings amid Turkish bombardment on Syria's northeastern town of Ras al-Ain on October 9, 2019. (Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)

Interview

Turkey’s Syria offensive could displace over a million Kurds, top analyst warns

Jonathan Spyer says Erdogan’s army indiscriminately shelling civilian areas, though unlikely to carry out massacres; believes Kurds will reject Israeli offer of humanitarian aid

Democratic presidential hopeful Senator Amy Klobuchar during the fourth Democratic primary debate of the 2020 presidential campaign season co-hosted by The New York Times and CNN at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio, October 15, 2019. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)

October 16, 2019, 5:45 am

Democratic hopeful Klobuchar at debate: Trump’s Syria pullout endangers Israel

In criticism of US troop withdrawal, candidate says America’s allies now think president is not true to country’s allies

By TOI staff and Agencies

Photo taken from the Turkish side of the border between Turkey and Syria, in Ceylanpinar, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, showing smoke billowing from targets in Ras al-Ayn, Syria, caused by bombardment by Turkish forces, October 15, 2019. (AP Photo/Cavit Ozgul)

October 16, 2019, 4:35 am

Canada suspends new arms sales to Turkey

Ottowa joins other major powers in punishing Ankara for its invasion of Kurdish-held areas in northern Syria

By AFP

Turkish troops and Turkish-backed Syrian rebels gather outside the border town of Ras al-Ain on October 12, 2019, during their assault on Kurdish-held border towns in northeastern Syria. (Nazeer Al-khatib / AFP)

October 15, 2019, 11:17 pm

UK, Spain suspend arms exports to Turkey over Syria offensive

London and Madrid join other major powers in punishing Ankara for its invasion of Kurdish-held area

By AFP

A student at Rojava University's women's studies program. (Channel 12 screenshot)

October 14, 2019, 5:39 am

Amid ongoing regional strife, Kurdish women battle for equal rights at home

The University of Rojava in northern Syria this year launched a women’s studies program that seeks to educate its students on how to cope with everyday sexism

By TOI staff

October 13, 2019, 1:39 am

Kurdish politician, other civilians ‘executed’ by Turkey-backed group

Hevrin Khalaf, her driver and seven others killed by fighters allied with Ankara on road outside Tel Abyad in northern Syria, monitor says

By AFP

Pro-Turkish Syrian fighters gather near the Turkish village of Akinci along the border with Syria on October 11, 2019. (Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)

October 12, 2019, 11:12 pm

France, Germany halt arms exports to Turkey as Arab League demands UN action

Thousands throughout Europe protest Turkish assault on Syria’s Kurds, while Ankara remains defiant

By Agencies

Turkish soldiers and Turkey-backed Syrian fighters ride on an army tank near the Turkish village of Akcakale along the border with Syria on October 11, 2019, as they prepare to take part in the Turkish-led assault on northeastern Syria (Bakr ALKASEM / AFP)

October 12, 2019, 8:32 pm

Turkey’s takeover of northern Syria all but certain, but will come at a price

Erdogan’s forces face formidable opponent in Kurds, who are fighting in their own territory on their own terms, drawing blood that will test support at home for Turkish president

By Avi Issacharoff

A member of the Kurdish Internal Security Force stands guard during a protest in the northern Syrian town of Hasakeh on October 12, 2019, against the Turkish offensives on Kurdish-held towns. (AFP)

October 12, 2019, 7:49 pm

Kurds urge US to assume ‘moral obligations,’ say they’re being left to slaughter

SDF chief said to accuse Washington of immoral behavior: ‘You are not willing to protect the people, but do not want another force to come and protect us’

By Agencies and TOI staff

A Turkish-backed Syrian rebel watches as smoke billows from the border town of Ras al-Ayn on October 12, 2019. (Nazeer Al-khatib/AFP)

October 12, 2019, 4:55 pm

Turkish forces claim to capture center of key Syrian border town; Kurds deny it

War monitor group also says Erdogan’s troops enter heart of Ras al-Ayn, marking most significant gain since invasion began; Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces say they’re still there

By Mehmet Guzel

Turkey-backed Syrian fighters walk near the Turkish village of Akcakale along the border with Syria on October 11, 2019, as they prepare to take part in the Turkish-led assault on northeastern Syria. (Bakr Alkasem/AFP)

October 12, 2019, 5:49 am

US troops come under fire as Turkish forces advance in Syria

No American soldiers injured in Turkish artillery strike near small outpost, as casualties mount, international criticism intensifies and 100,000 flee violence in Syrian Kurdistan

By Mehmet Guzel and Sarah El Deeb

Turkish-backed Syrian opposition fighters from the Syrian National Army drive through the town of Akcakale, Sanliurfa province, southeastern Turkey, on their way to cross the border to Tel Abyad, Syria, October 11, 2019. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)

October 12, 2019, 3:00 am

Pentagon says US not abandoning Kurds in face of Turkish attack

US Defense Secretary Mark Esper says Washington ‘greatly disappointed’ by Turkey’s invasion of Syria, insists Kurdish forces remain viable partner for American military

By Robert Burns and Lolita C. Baldor

October 11, 2019, 6:55 am

Turkey’s Syria offensive could displace over a million Kurds, top analyst warns

Jonathan Spyer says Erdogan’s army indiscriminately shelling civilian areas, though unlikely to carry out massacres; believes Kurds will reject Israeli offer of humanitarian aid

By Raphael Ahren

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during an extended meeting with provincial heads of ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party in Ankara, Turkey, on October 10, 2019. (Adem ALTAN / AFP)

October 10, 2019, 8:17 pm

Turkey hits back at Netanyahu for condemning its onslaught against Kurds

Erdogan spokesman calls PM’s rebuke of offensive ’empty words of a disgraced politician facing years in prison’; claims Kurds are under Turkish protection

By TOI staff

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a memorial ceremony at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl for those killed in the Yom Kippur War, on October 10, 2019. (Flash90)

October 10, 2019, 4:25 pm

Netanyahu condemns Turkish invasion of Syrian Kurdistan, offers aid

Prime minister warns against ‘ethnic cleansing’ of minority in northern Syria, does not mention decision by US president that paved way for offensive

By Jacob Magid

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at a memorial ceremony at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl for those killed in the Yom Kippur War, on October 10, 2019. (Screen capture/Youtube)

October 10, 2019, 1:47 pm

As US pulls out of Syria, Netanyahu insists Israel can defend itself on its own

PM avoids commenting directly on Trump decision, criticized by senior right-wing MKs as an abandonment of the Kurds, but says Jerusalem appreciates Washington’s assistance

By Jacob Magid