Turkey Getting Ready for Massive Operation East of Euphrates

Turkish army soldiers stand guard as Kurdish people wait in a hope to enter Cizre, a town subject to a curfew as part of a controversial operation against Kurdish rebels, on March 22, 2016 in Mardin, for Newroz celebration. Nowruz, the Farsi-language word for ‘New Year’, is an ancient Persian festival, celebrated on the first day of spring, March 21, in Central Asian republics, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan and Iran. / AFP PHOTO / ILYAS AKENGIN

BEIRUT, LEBANON (11:40 A.M.) – The Turkish Armed Forces are preparing for a massive operation east of the Euphrates, the Daily Sabah reported on Friday, citing different media and military reports.

According to Daily Sabah, the Turkish military has deployed more than 50 tanks inside the Akcakale District, whih is near the SDF-held border town of Tal Abyad in northern Al-Raqqa.

The publicaation said the recent meetings between the U.S., Gulf nations (Saudi Arabia and UAE), and Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are pushing Turkey to launch this extensive military offensive against the “YPG terrorists”.

“The latest deployments and tactical mobility on the ground have very strong indications for an offensive east of the Euphrates,” Abdullah Ağar, a former military officer and security expert, said Thursday, as quoted by the Daily Sabah.

The Turkish regime has often spoke about an imminent military operation east of the Euphrates; however, the U.S. has attempted to ease tensions in the region by holding meetings with Ankara.

The YPG and SDF are viewed by the Turkish regime as offshoots of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK); this aforementioned group was involved in a long war with the Turkish military towards the end of the 20th century.