Turkey captures key Syrian town

Tightens grip on Kurdish militia in sixth week of offensive

MARSAWA, Syria — Turkey’s prime minister said Saturday that Turkish troops have captured a strategic village in the Kurdish-held enclave in northwestern Syria, tightening its grip on Kurdish militia in the sixth week of its offensive on the area.

Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said the Kurdish Afrin district has been “surrounded” by the military, special police and paramilitary forces, as well as allied Syrian opposition fighters.

“Afrin has been surrounded. We have cleared all areas near our borders of terror nests,” he said at a rally in the central province of Konya, adding that Turkey would not cease its campaign against “terror.”

Turkish troops and allied Syrian fighters have been attacking Afrin from the north, west and east, and have formed a crescent around the district.

Associated Press journalists gained access to Afrin district for the first time Saturday on a tour organized by the Turkish-government, visiting a small village recently cleared of the YPG.

Captain Ahmed Taqtaq of the allied Syrian forces in Marsawa village said they seized control of three villages in the last 10 days, fighting some 50 Syrian Kurdish fighters. He said, “Since we were in elevated areas, it facilitated our advance toward these villages.” Armed Syrian fighters patrolled the village.

Turkey’s Red Crescent and emergency agency distributed beds, blankets and food to some 20 families in Marsawa, where walls were tagged with the logos of the YPG and other Kurdish groups.

Further south, Turkish soldiers kept watch with weapons at the ready in Bursayah Hill, captured in late January. A Turkish flag now flutters above a former YPG watchtower.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the Syria conflict through on-the-ground activists, said fierce clashes were still ongoing in Rajo, in Afrin’s northwest.

If confirmed, Rajo would be the largest center in Afrin to be captured since the Turkish offensive began on Jan. 20. Turkish borders run along Afrin’s western and northern borders. To the east lies a Syrian territory controlled by Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters. In the south, Syrian government forces control territory.