Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Sunday that Turkish troops and their Syrian rebel fighter allies have seized control of the town center of Afrin from Kurdish YPG fighters.

Erdogan said Turkish soldiers along with rebel factions of the Free Syrian Army took complete control of Afrin town center at 8.30 am local time.

He said mopping operations are underway and the Turkish flag has been raised in the town that sits less than 50 kilometers from the Turkish border.

“Most of the terrorists fled already,” Erdogan said. “Our special forces and Free Syrian Army are clearing the remaining few terrorists and the mines that they might have left. In the center of Afrin the symbols of peace and security are flying, not the rags of a terror organization. Now the Turkish flag is flying there. The FSA flag is flying there.”

Turkey launched its military offensive against US-backed Kurdish YPG militia in Afrin on January 20, supported by FSA rebel factions.

Ankara says the YPG is an extension of the PKK, a marxist Kurdish militant group that has been waging an insurgency in southeast Turkey since the 1980s.

Erdogan was speaking in Canakkale at an event to mark the anniversary of battle of the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli, one of the only major victories of Ottoman forces during the First World War, and an important moment in the history of Turkish nationalism.

More than 150,000 people have been displaced in the last few days from Afrin town, a senior Kurdish official and a monitoring group said Saturday.</s>BEIRUT - Turkish forces and their Syrian rebel allies damaged and tore down a statue linked to Kurdish culture in the center of Syria's Afrin town on Sunday, a statement on a Whatsapp group run by the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces said, citing the Afrin media center.



The statue was of the blacksmith Kawa, a central figure in a Kurdish legend about the new year celebration of Nawroz. The statement said this was the "first blatant violation of Kurdish people's culture and history since the takeover of Afrin."



Turkey-backed forces swept into the northwestern Syrian town of Afrin on Sunday, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said.</s>Afrin (Syria) (AFP) - Turkish-backed rebels have seized the centre of Afrin city in northern Syria, Ankara said Sunday, as they made rapid gains in their campaign against Kurdish forces.

"Units of the Free Syrian Army, which are backed by Turkish armed forces, took control of the centre of Afrin this morning at 8:30 am (0530 GMT)," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has vowed to oust Kurdish militia from areas along the Turkish border.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the country's war, said Turkish-led forces had made a lighting advance inside Afrin, taking control of half the Kurdish-majority city.

A civilian inside Afrin said that rebels had deployed in the city centre and that the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia had withdrawn.

Civilians hiding in basements could hear fighting outside and people shouting "God is greatest", one resident told AFP.

An AFP correspondent in the city said he heard explosions on Sunday morning.

The capture of Afrin would be a major victory in Ankara's campaign against the YPG, which Turkey considers a terrorist group.

Ankara launched Operation "Olive Branch" in Afrin two months ago, saying the area near the Turkish border needed to be secured and the YPG pushed out.

The advance has made steady gains and earlier this week Turkish-led forces largely surrounded Afrin city, leaving a single escape route open southwards to territory still held by the YPG or controlled by the Syrian regime.

At least 200,000 civilians had fled the city over the last week, the Observatory said.

Turkish jets and artillery have been battering Afrin for weeks and ground clashes intensified in recent days, raising fears for thousands of civilians trapped in street-to-street fighting.

At least 27 civilians were killed in Turkish bombing on Friday and Saturday, according to the Observatory, including 16 when a raid reportedly struck the main hospital in Afrin city on Friday.

The Observatory says more than 280 civilians have been killed since the campaign began. Ankara has denied the reports, including of Friday's hospital strike, and said it takes the "utmost care" to avoid civilian casualties.

The Observatory said Sunday that more than 1,500 Kurdish fighters had been killed since the start of the offensive, most of them in air strikes and artillery fire.

More than 400 pro-Ankara rebels have been killed since January 20, the Observatory said Sunday.

The Turkish military says 46 Turkish soldiers have lost their lives.

Turkey sees the YPG as a "terrorist" offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.

But the Kurdish militia has also formed the backbone of a US-backed alliance that has successfully expelled the Islamic State jihadist group from large parts of Syria.

Syria's civil war entered its eighth year this week with heavy fighting on two fronts -- around Afrin and in the rebel enclave of Eastern Ghouta, near Damascus.

Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad launched a ferocious assault last month to retake Eastern Ghouta, the last major opposition-held area around the capital.

More than 1,400 civilians have been killed in bombardment and clashes in Eastern Ghouta during the offensive, according to the Observatory.

Regime forces have retaken some 80 percent of Eastern Ghouta since launching the offensive, carving it up into three shrinking pockets held by different rebel groups.

More than 50,000 people are reported to have fled the area in recent days.

On Saturday, pro-government forces took control of the two towns of Kafr Batna and Saqba in the southern pocket held by the Faylaq al-Rahman rebel group, the Observatory said.

More than 350,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict broke out in 2011 with protests against Assad.

He has maintained his grip on power despite global calls to step down and outrage at the offensives he has waged to retake towns and cities from rebel fighters.</s>Erdogan said Turkish soldiers along with rebel factions of the Free Syrian Army took complete control of Afrin town center at 8.30 am local time.

He said mopping operations are underway and the Turkish flag has been raised in the town that sits less than 50 kilometers from the Turkish border.

"Most of the terrorists fled already," Erdogan said. "Our special forces and Free Syrian Army are clearing the remaining few terrorists and the mines that they might have left. In the center of Afrin the symbols of peace and security are flying, not the rags of a terror organization. Now the Turkish flag is flying there. The FSA flag is flying there."

Turkey launched its military offensive against US-backed Kurdish YPG militia in Afrin on January 20, supported by FSA rebel factions.

Ankara says the YPG is an extension of the PKK, a marxist Kurdish militant group that has been waging an insurgency in southeast Turkey since the 1980s. Erdogan was speaking in Canakkale at an event to mark the anniversary of battle of the 1915 Battle of Gallipoli, one of the only major victories of Ottoman forces during the First World War, and an important moment in the history of Turkish nationalism. More than 150,000 people have been displaced in the last few days from Afrin town, a senior Kurdish official and a monitoring</s>ISTANBUL, March 18 (Reuters) - Turkish-backed Syrian rebel fighters took control of parts of the town of Afrin on Sunday after Kurdish YPG forces pulled out, a spokesman for the Free Syrian Army rebel fighters said.

Mohammad al-Hamadeen said the fighters entered Afrin shortly before dawn, from the north, east and west of the town, and had not encountered any resistance.

"They have taken control of parts of the town," Hamadeen told Reuters. "They are combing the streets and the houses".

There was no immediate comment from Turkey, which launched its military offensive against the Kurdish YPG forces in Afrin on January 20, supported by FSA rebel factions.

Ankara says the YPG is an extension of a Kurdish militant group which has been waging an insurgency in southeast Turkey since the 1980s.

More than 150,000 people have been displaced in the last few days from Afrin town, a senior Kurdish official and a monitoring group said on Saturday. (Reporting by Dominic Evans; editing by Jason Neely)</s>A British woman has been killed fighting in Afrin, Syria, with an all-female Kurdish armed unit, it has been revealed. Anna Campbell, 26, is the first British woman to have died in Syria fighting with YPG/YPJ forces.

Campbell, from Lewes in East Sussex, died on March 15 in the Syrian city of Afrin. Afrin has recently been surrounded by Turkish forces, which have entered Syria ostensibly to oust Kurdish forces from the Syrian border. Friends of Campbell in Syria told the BBC she was killed in a Turkish airstrike.

She had been fighting with the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ). The YPJ is an all-female affiliate of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in the Kurdish-populated north western part of Syria.

Campbell’s father, Dirk Campbell, described his daughter as “idealistic” and “determined.” She traveled to Syria in May 2017 to work with Kurdish fighters who were battling ISIS.

“She wanted to create a better world and she would do everything in her power to do that,” her father said. “I told her of course that she was putting her life in danger, which she knew full well she was doing. I feel I should have done more to persuade her to come back, but she was completely adamant.”

Her father said that he understands that his daughter’s Kurdish friends tried to stop her from going to Afrin. In January, Turkish forces kicked off a major offensive against the Kurds along the northern border of Syria, forcing more than 5,000 people to flee their homes in Afrin alone.

Many YPJ fighters who battled IS moved to defend the north. Some British volunteers, including Campbell, joined them.

Campbell’s father said he contacted his local MP when he discovered that his daughter was in danger from the Turkish bombardment. “With fair hair and blue eyes they knew she would stand out, but she dyed her hair black and persuaded them to let her go,” he said. “I emailed my MP and said my daughter is in danger, you have to get on to the Foreign Office and get them to put pressure on Turkey to stop.”

A YPJ source told the Guardian that the 26-year-old Briton had insisted on heading to Afrin. “They refused at first, but she was adamant, and even dyed her blonde hair black so as to appear less conspicuous as a westerner,” the source said. “Finally they gave in and let her go.”

READ MORE: Briton arrested on terrorism charges… because he fought against ISIS

In a statement to the Guardian on Sunday, YPJ commander and spokesperson Nesrin Abdullah said: “[Campbell’s] martyrdom is a great loss to us because with her international soul, her revolutionary spirit, which demonstrated the power of women, she expressed her will in all her actions… On behalf of the Women’s Defence Units YPJ, we express our deepest condolences to [her] family and we promise to follow the path she took up. We will represent her in the entirety of our struggles.”

Dirk Campbell described his late daughter as a “beautiful and loving,” and someone who “would go to any lengths to create the world that she believed in.” He said: “Anna was very idealistic, very serious, very wholehearted and wanted to create a better world. She wasn’t fighting when she died, she was engaged in a defensive action against the Turkish incursion.” He also said his daughter had dedicated her life to the fight against “unjust power and privilege.”

Campbell is one of eight Britons to have died in Syria with the YPG or YPJ. Other Britons who left the UK to take up arms against ISIS have been arrested on terrorism charges upon their return.

Like this story? Share it with a friend!</s>Beirut (AFP) - Turkish forces and their rebel allies have entered Syria's Kurdish-majority city of Afrin and taken control of several districts, a war monitor said on Sunday.

"Fighting is ongoing inside the city, where Turkish forces and allied rebels have seized some neighbourhoods," the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said.

Pro-Ankara Syrian rebels said they "broke into the city from the eastern and western sides" to seize the neighbourhoods of Ashrafieh and Jamiliyyeh.

Civilians hiding in basements inside the city could hear fighting outside and people shouting "God is greatest", one resident told AFP.

Turkish-led forces have advanced rapidly into the Kurdish enclave around Afrin city near the Turkish border since launching an assault on it almost two months ago.

They are fighting the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, which Ankara considers a "terrorist" offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

But the Kurdish militia has also formed the backbone of an American-backed alliance that has expelled the Islamic State jihadist group from large parts of Syria.

The Observatory says more than 280 civilians have been killed in the offensive since January 20, but Ankara denies the reports and says it takes the "utmost care" to avoid civilian casualties.

More than 200,000 civilians have fled Afrin city in the past three days, the Observatory says.</s>Turkish forces and their rebel allies were in control of the Kurdish-majority city of Afrin in northwestern Syria on Sunday, AFP journalists on the ground reported.

The journalists in Afrin saw Ankara-backed Syrian Arab fighters and Turkish soldiers in every neighbourhood of the city.

Turkish flags had been raised on buildings, alongside the flags of Syrian rebel groups.

Two Turkish tanks stood outside an official building and shots of celebration were being fired into the air.

Dozens of civilians were seen leaving the centre of the city, where explosions sounded as demining operations were carried out.

There were no signs of further clashes between pro-Turkish forces and the People's Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish militia group that had been in control of the city before Sunday.</s>The Turkish military and allied Syrian forces have taken "total" control of the town centre of Afrin, the target of an offensive against the Kurdish militia.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the Turkish flag and the flag of the Syrian opposition fighters have been raised in the town, previously controlled by the Kurdish militia known as the People's Defense Units, or YPG.

"Many of the terrorists had turned tail and run away already," Mr Erdogan said in a speech in western Turkey.

Turkey views the Kurdish forces in the Afrin enclave along the border as terrorists linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency within Turkey's borders.

Ankara launched the operation, codenamed Olive Branch, against the town and surrounding areas on January 20, slowly squeezing the militia and hundreds of thousands of civilians into the town centre.

A Kurdish official, Hadia Yousef, said the YPG was still fighting inside the town, but had evacuated the remaining civilians because of "massacres".

But Salih Muslim, a senior Kurdish official living in exile in Europe, tweeted that Kurdish fighters had withdrawn, saying "the struggle will continue and the Kurdish people will keep defending themselves".

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said nearly 200,000 people have fled the Afrin region in recent days amid heavy airstrikes, entering Syrian government-held territory nearby.

Syrian State TV on Sunday broadcast footage of a long line of vehicles and civilians on foot leaving Afrin.</s>Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Footage shows destroyed statues and flags being raised in the centre of Afrin

Turkish-backed forces have taken full control of the centre of the Syrian-Kurdish city of Afrin.

Fighters waved flags and tore down the statue of a legendary Kurdish figure after claiming the city centre on Sunday.

The two-month Turkish-led operation aimed to rid the border region of a Kurdish militia that Turkey considers a terrorist group.

Activists say 280 civilians have died, although this is denied by Ankara.

Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that "units of the Free Syrian Army... took control of the centre of Afrin this morning".

Image copyright Reuters Image caption Turkish forces and the Free Syrian Army entered Afrin on Sunday

Operations continued on Sunday to clear mines and remaining Kurdish resistance elsewhere in Afrin.

"Most of the terrorists have already fled with tails between their legs," the Turkish president said.

"In the centre of Afrin, symbols of trust and stability are waving instead of rags of terrorists."

Pictures and video footage emerged of forces tearing down a Kurdish statue with a bulldozer.

The monument depicted the blacksmith Kawa, a legendary figure for Kurds.

Image copyright AFP Image caption Syrian rebels celebrated after the statue of Kawa was brought down in the centre of Afrin

A statement on a Whatsapp group for the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces called it the "first blatant violation of Kurdish people's culture and history since the takeover of Afrin".

A Turkish armed forces Twitter page posted a video of troops displaying the nation's flag in Afrin's centre.

Mohammad al-Hamadeen, spokesman for the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), said they met no resistance as they entered Afrin on three fronts.

"Maybe it will be cleared by the end of the day - it is empty of [YPG] fighters, they cleared out," he said.

Turkish military spokesman Bekir Bozdag said the campaign would continue until the area around Afrin was secure.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption A short guide to the Syrian civil war

He said the YPG's "terrorism corridor" in Afrin was over.

However, in a televised statement, the co-chair of the Afrin executive council, Othman Sheikh Issa, said the war against Turkey had entered "a new stage".

Kurdish forces remained in the region and would "strike the positions of the Turkish enemy and its mercenaries at every opportunity", he said.

"Our forces all over Afrin will become a constant nightmare for them," he added.

The statement also said civilians had not fled, but were evacuated "to avoid a worse catastrophe".

Image copyright AFP/Getty Image caption Civilians have fled Afrin in the past few days

Will Turkey press on?

By Mark Lowen, BBC Turkey Correspondent

President Erdogan has achieved his twin objectives: to remove a key area under YPG control and to rally the vast majority of Turks behind their commander-in-chief. The jingoism here has been breathtaking. Targeting the Kurdish militants, Turkey's age-old enemy, is a rare uniting force in a polarised country. Those who have spoken out - several hundred - have been detained for "terrorism propaganda".

The question now is whether Turkey pushes on to other YPG-held areas, namely Manbij, which could put Turkish troops in direct conflict with US soldiers there who see the YPG as allies. That depends on talks between Ankara and Washington, and the sacking of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week removes an important interlocutor for Turkey.

The risk in Afrin is that many residents who will return are Kurdish and could see Turkey as the aggressor. Tearing down a Kurdish statue in the town centre doesn't augur well. Will the Afrin operation actually push more local people into the arms of the YPG?

Why has Turkey taken Afrin?

The Turkish assault on Afrin, named Operation Olive Branch, began on 20 January, with the aim of ridding the city and surrounding region of the YPG.

Turkey regards the YPG as an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in south-eastern Turkey for three decades.

The YPG denies any direct organisational links to the PKK - an assertion backed by the US, which is allied with the YPG in the battle against the jihadist group Islamic State (IS) in Syria.

US plans to help form a Kurdish border force set alarm bells ringing in Ankara, and prompted the launch of Operation Olive Branch.

President Erdogan vowed to "suffocate" what he called a "terror army."

Turkey also announced plans to push Kurdish forces from Manbij, another city near the border.

What is the Free Syrian Army?

Backed by Turkey, the Free Syrian Army is a rebel group operating in the north of the country.

It is helping Turkey to secure its border with Syria, and has fought against the Syrian army, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces and the Islamic State group.

What is happening elsewhere in Syria?

The assault in the north-west coincides with a Syrian and Russian offensive on Eastern Ghouta, an enclave near Damascus.

The Syrian army is pushing into the area with the support of Russian air strikes, and there are reports of civilian casualties.

The pro-government assault is said to have captured 80% of the enclave. Seizing it would be a major victory for President Bashar al-Assad, who reportedly visited Syrian troops in the Eastern Ghouta on Sunday.

State television broadcast images of the president in shirt and jacket surrounded by soldiers in an unspecified part of the district.
The Turkish Army and Free Syrian Army seize the Kurdish stronghold of Afrin from the YPG in northern Syria, raising the Turkish flag above the city centre. A statue of the Kurdish legendary figure, Kaveh the Blacksmith, is bulldozed by Turkish-backed forces.