BEIRUT — The Latest on the conflict in Syria (all times local):

A Turkish minister says reports that Syrian government forces are entering a Syrian Kurdish-held enclave "are false," adding that any move by Damascus to protect the Kurdish militia there would be a "disaster" for the region. The warning sets up a potential clash between Turkish troops and Syrian government forces backed by Russia and Iran, whose deployment would be a first step toward restoring Syrian President Bashar Assad’s presence along the border with Turkey. The warning by the Turkish foreign minister came shortly after Syrian state media said pro-government forces would enter Afrin "within hours" to "bolster" local forces in confronting Turkey's "aggression" after reaching an agreement with the Kurdish militia known as the People's Protection Units, or YPG, which controls Afrin. He said the deal was only on military aspects and any political or other agreements would have to wait for further talks. Syrian state TV is reporting that Turkish troops are shelling the entrance of the northern Kurdish enclave of Afrin shortly after scores of pro-government fighters entered the area. Turkey launched its offensive to clear Afrin of the Syrian Kurdish militia it considers a "terrorist" organization and an extension to its own outlawed Kurdish rebels fighting within Turkey. Turkey launched its offensive on Jan. 20 to clear Afrin of Syrian Kurdish militia which Turkey considers to be an offshoot of its own outlawed Kurdish rebels fighting within Turkey. Turkey's foreign minister, speaking at a news conference in Amman, Jordan, said Turkey would have no problem if Syrian government forces were entering Afrin to clear the area from YPG fighters, but that it would strike back if it turns out the deployment was meant to shore up the Kurds against Turkey. “If (the Syrian army) comes in to defend the YPG, then nothing and nobody can stop Turkish soldiers,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in Jordan. Government troops deployed along its borders, at this point, may be more palatable for Ankara than the continued presence of the powerful YPG. But while Washington has a military presence in the much larger swathes of Syria that the YPG and its allies control further east, it has not given support to the YPG in Afrin. The private Dogan news agency said the advancing forces, which are battling a Syrian Kurdish militia, took control of a key road linking the two areas in northern Syria, along the border. A Syrian Kurdish official told The Associated Press that the Syrian forces will enter Afrin from the Shiite villages of Nubul and Zahraa in Aleppo province. “The army will deploy in several border areas in co-ordination with the People’s Protection Units and the Syrian Democratic Forces,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to reveal details of the agreement. Badran Jia Kurd, an adviser to the Kurdish-led autonomous administration in north Syria, said on Sunday there was a military understanding between Damascus and Kurdish forces for the Syrian army to enter Afrin. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan launched the air and ground offensive Operation Olive Branch last month, opening a new front in Syria’s bloody conflict which has already killed dozens of civilians and fighters on both sides. The Turkish officials detailed the call on condition of anonymity in line with government regulations, and did not mention an agreement for government troops to enter Afrin. Turkish troops and allied Syrian opposition fighters meanwhile continued to pound villages in the enclave with artillery, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and Syria's state media. • As Syria sees one of the bloodiest periods of its war, UN calls for immediate cease-fire: ‘The war is far from over’
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The Observatory said Monday’s shelling by Turkish troops killed three people, including a child, and that others were wounded. The Kurdish official told The Associated Press that the reports about the YPG handing over their weapons are “totally untrue.”

Elsewhere in Syria, government shelling of the rebel-held eastern suburbs of Damascus killed at least 30 people, according to opposition activists and paramedics. He was asked whether they will withdraw from the talks

Al-Hariri said the government bombardment of Damascus' eastern suburbs, also known as eastern Ghouta, are a "flagrant defiance of international law." Opposition activists say government forces have brought in reinforcements in preparation for a wider offensive on the area — the last main rebel stronghold near Damascus. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Monday's airstrikes and shelling on suburbs including Saqba, Sheifouniyeh and Jisreen killed 18 people. The Syrian Civil Defense, also known as White Helmets, said the shelling and airstrikes killed 98 and that some people are still under the rubble. Syrian state TV reported that rebels, in return, fired dozens of mortar rounds and rockets at Damascus, wounding eight people.
Pro-Syrian government forces are sent to help the Kurdish YPG fight against Turkey and the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army in the Afrin Region. This action opens up a new front in the war.