Despite the deployment of the regime forces in Afrin area…the Turkish warplanes and artillery continue their targeting to the area with the ongoing clashes in it
Aleppo Province – The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights: the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the violent clashes are still continuing between the Turkish forces and the rebel and Islamic factions against the YPG and the Self-Defense Forces, in places in Afrin area in the north-western section of Aleppo province, and the SOHR monitored that the clashes are concentrated in areas in the northern and western sections of Afrin countryside, in the townships of Jendires and Sharra, in an attempt by the Turkish forces to achieve further advancement in the area, after they imposed their control over more than 14% of the total villages of Afrin area, during a month of the military operations in it, since Operation “Olive Branch” was launched on the 20th of January 2018.
This ongoing shelling which preceded by bombardment targeted the YPG-held areas in Afrin, comes after the regime forces deployed in the fronts and the contact lines with the forces of the “Olive Branch” Operation in the townships of Sharra in the north-east of Afrin, Raju in its north-west, Sheikh Hadid in its west, and Jendires in the south-west of Afrin, where the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published few hours ago, that the regime forces which entered Afrin yesterday evening, started to deploy in Afrin’s townships, where they started to distribute their points on the contact lines with the Turkish forces in the townships of Jendires, Sheikh Hadid, Raju, and Sharra, from the south-west of Afrin to its north-east, with the exception of the front of Bulbula, while the “Olive Branch” Operation Forces have managed until now to control 49 villages, in addition to Bulbula town, which is about 14% of the total villages of Afrin, and the Syrian Observatory also published yesterday that that the Turkish forces and their allied Syrian rebel and Islamic opposition factions, completed to unite their controlled areas on the northern border line of Afrin with Turkey, to impose their control over about 50 km of this border, and to expand their control to more than 150 km from the west of the Euphrates River to Shenkal area in the north-west of Afrin, and this control came after the Turkish forces expanded their control and after they managed to take the control of Arab Wayran area separates between Jabal Barsaya and the rest of the controlled areas of the forces of the “Olive Branch” Operation on the northern border line of Afrin with Turkey, expanding the control of the Turkish forces and their allied factions participating in the operation, to 45 villages at least as well as Bulbula town, and the Turkish forces are fighting desperately to impose their control over the entire border line between Afrin, Iskenderun and Turkey.