Syria’s authorities believe that Turkey’s military operation in Afrin is geared to support terrorism, Syria's President Bashar Assad said.
"Turkey’s aggression in the Syrian city of Afrin cannot be separated from the policy pursued by the Turkish regime since the outbreak of the Syrian crisis and built on support to terrorism and various terrorist groups," SANA news agency cited him as saying.
On Saturday, Turkey’s General Staff announced beginning of the Olive Branch operation against the Kurds’ units near Afrin, where about 1.5 million Syrian Kurds live. On Sunday, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim confirmed that Turkey’s army has launched a ground operation in Syria. By now, Turksih troops have taken an area of 5 kilometers.
