Manbij reinforced, but not by YPG, Kurdish spokesman saysAugust 29, 2016 - 14:17 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - A spokesman for the autonomous Kurdish region in Syria said on Monday, August 29 that local military forces in the Syrian cities of Manbij and Jarablus are being reinforced, but not by Kurdish YPG militia, Reuters says. The spokesman was responding to comments from regional security sources that YPG fighters appear to be reinforcing Manbij, captured this month from Islamic State, with weapons and personnel. Manbij and Jarablus lie to the west of the Euphrates River, an area of northern Syria which Turkey and the United States have told the Kurdish YPG forces to withdraw from. "There are reinforcements, but not by the YPG. Because the YPG are east of the Euphrates, not in Manbij or Jarablus," said Ibrahim Ibrahim, head of the Rojava Media Office. Rojava is an autonomous political federation in northern Syria run by Syrian Kurdish parties and their allies. He did not identify the forces being sent to Manbij and Jarablus, but he said military councils in both cities are made up of local fighters and some Free Syrian Army rebel groups which are allied to the U.S.-backed anti-Islamic State alliance the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The Kurdish YPG militia, which makes up a large part of the SDF, said it had withdrawn east of the Euphrates in line with U.S. and Turkish demands after the SDF drove Islamic State out of Manbij. Turkey, battling its own Kurdish insurgency, wants to prevent Syrian Kurdish forces taking complete control of Syria's northern border with Turkey. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Ucom Celebrates Telecommunication Day May 17 commemorates the founding of the International Telecommunication Union on May 17, 1865. Armenian, Azerbaijani heads of parliament meet in Switzerland President of the Armenian parliament Alen Simonyan met with the Speaker of the Azerbaijani Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova. Border residents overnight on highway to protest Armenia’s Residents of Kirants continue to express outrage over the government’s decision to cede land to Azerbaijan. Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. |