Baku, Azerbaijan, March 17
Trend:
Turkish troops that had begun Operation Olive Branch in Syria on opposite sides of Afrin's north have been reunited, the Turkish General Staff said on Saturday, Turkish media reported.
In a statement, the Turkish General Staff said the two groups were heading west to east and vice versa before converging in the northern part of Syria's Afrin.
On Jan. 20, the Turkish Armed Forces, together with the Free Syrian Army, launched the Operation Olive Branch in Afrin, Syria.
Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim announced that about 8,000-10,000 PYD/YPG terrorists are supposed to be hiding in Afrin.
Turkey began drawing its military to the Syrian border in late June 2017. The forces were being concentrated in Turkish Kilis Province bordering Syrian territory controlled by YPG/PYD.
On Aug. 24, 2016, Turkish Armed Forces, with the support of the Syrian opposition, launched the Euphrates Shield Operation against the IS militants and liberated the city of Jarabulus as well as the city of Al-Bab in northern Syria.