Insight

Turkey has begun the fight against PKK/PYD terrorists in northern Syria following US President Donald Trump’s announcement that the US is pulling its troops from the region.

Turkish Army's armored military vehicles and heavy duty machines are being dispatched to the Syrian border ahead of Turkey's planned operation in the east of the Euphrates River in northern Syria in Akcakale district of Sanliurfa, Turkey on October 08, 2019. (Mehmet Akif Parlak / AA)

Turkey has launched ‘Operation Peace Spring’ (Baris Pinari) in northern Syria on Wednesday. The decision comes at the heels of US President Donald Trump’s announcement on the withdrawal of US troops from northern Syria.

Turkey says the operation aims to clear the region of YPG/PKK terrorists.

Here’s what some Twitter users had to say about the operation.

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tweeted on October 5 using the hashtag: ‘Time to hit the road again’. He wrote “We did our preparations, we completed our operation plans, we gave the necessary orders. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, it will be time to pave the way for peace springs.

Hazırlıklarımızı yaptık, harekât planlarımızı tamamladık, gereken talimatları verdik.



Kararı verilen ve süreci başlamış olan barış pınarlarının önünü açma vakti, belki bugün, belki yarın denebilecek kadar yakındır.#YenidenYollaraDüşmeVakti pic.twitter.com/EdFBuOia2D — Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (@RTErdogan) October 5, 2019

The Turkish military has also tweeted that it had completed preparations for Operation Peace Spring before it started on Tuesday.

Turkish Armed Forces and TAF-backed FSA completed the preparations for the Operation Peace Spring#PeaceSpring#OperationPeaceSpring — Peace Spring Operation (@peacespringOP) October 8, 2019

The user ‘medya adami’ wrote that: “[Turkish soldiers] are not in Syria for petrol but to put a smile on [Syrian] children’s faces, to build their future.”

Mehmetçik petrol için değil gül yüzlü çocukların yüzünü güldürmek, geleceklerini inşa etmek için Suriye’de.#BarışPınarı#BarışPınarıHarekatı pic.twitter.com/NvHFmrakGw — medya adamı (@medyaadami) October 8, 2019

A parody/anonymous account by the name Hrant Enveryan defined the primary purpose and aim of Operation Peace Spring as: securing Turkey’s border, to secure Turkish citizens’ lives, to prevent a terror corridor from going all the way to the Mediterranean, and to safely repatriate millions of suffering Syrians to their homeland.

3] Barış Pınarı operasyonunun temel amaç ve hedefi;



- Sınır güvenliğini sağlamak



- Türkiye vatandaşlarının can güvenliğini sağlamak



- Akdeniz'e açılacak terör koridoruna engel olmak



- Milyonlarca mazlum Suriyeliyi öz vatanlarına güvenli bir şekilde yerleştirmek#BarışPınarı — Hrant Enveryan (@enveryan) October 8, 2019

He has also noted that the PKK/YPG-PYD “is not a Kurdish movement but on the contrary a terrorist organisation that also murders Kurds.”

Hatırlatayım:



PKK/YPG-PYD bir Kürt hareketi değil aksine Kürtleri de katleden bir terör örgütüdür



FETÖ'cü/NATO'cu kölelerin, yabancı basının "Kürtler/Kurds" üzerinden hassasiyet kasması tamamen bir algı operasyonudur



Bu gerçeği her tarafta dile getirelim#BarisPinariHarekati — Hrant Enveryan (@enveryan) October 8, 2019

Another hashtag, ‘Kurds side with Turkey’ was popular with supporters of Operation Peace Spring.

I'm Kurdish. Turkey is my country and I love my country. By the way Turks are our brothers that’s why l love my brothers too! 🇹🇷🇹🇷🇹🇷🇹🇷#KurdsSideWithTurkey — fedaiii (@NewzatC) October 8, 2019

Some were approving of the operation but not Erdogan. IYI Party Istanbul MP Umit Ozdag tweeted “The duty to destroy PKKistan came to life as a result of Erdogan’s faulty policy of trying to take down [Syrian leader Bashir] Assad and now this falls on the shoulders of the Turkish army. The Turkish soldier will pay with his blood and life and abolish the results of political mistakes. May God watch over our army.”

Erdoğan'ın hatalı Esad'ı yıkma politikasının sonucunda ortaya çıkan PKKistan'ı yoketme görevi Türk Ordusuna düştü.Türk askeri kanı ve canı ile siyasi hataların sonuçlarını ortadan kaldıracak.Allah ordumuzu korusun. — Prof. Dr. Ümit Özdağ (@umitozdag) October 8, 2019

Opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu posted a tweet asking seven pointed questions to Erdogan, including one that sought to find out why Syria, once a friend, is now an enemy. “Who told you to interfere with Syria’s internal affairs?” he demanded.

Erdoğan'a 7 soru: Eğer bu ülkeyi seviyorsan cevap bekliyorum! pic.twitter.com/WHdYIXEg3w — Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu (@kilicdarogluk) October 8, 2019

Journalist Caglar Cilara posted a tweet arguing against military action against the PKK/YPG.

Cilara wrote: “To say no to war does not mean you’re a supporter of terrorist organisations. To criticise [the governing] AK Party’s foreign policy, does not mean siding with the PKK. [Turkish] citizens are wondering about what goes on in Syria. To question this, to query, is not being a traitor. It is also your duty to listen to those who say ‘No to War’.

#savasahayır demek, terör örgütü destekçisi olmak değildir.



Ak Parti'nin dış politikasını eleştirmek, PKK'nın yanında durmak değildir



Vatandaş Suriye'de ne olup bittiğini merak ediyor



Bunları sormak, sorgulamak hainlik değildir



'Savaşa Hayır' diyenleri dinlemek de vazifeniz — Çağlar Cilara (@caglarcilara) October 8, 2019

Others argued with those who opposed Operation Peace Spring. Tugce Kazaz, a former model and actress, wrote: “‘You say ‘No to war!’” But why did PKK and its extensions receive 30 thousand trucks full of weapons, to attack whom? Who is the target of a godless terror organisation that has been nurtured by the West for the past 40 years? Whoever opposes Turkey’s operation to secure its border is either a vile traitor or a total idiot.”

“Savaşa hayır!” diyorsun. Peki PKK ve uzantılarına 30 bin tır silah yardımı kimi vurması için yapıldı? Batı’nın 40 yıllık beslemesi dinsiz bir terör örgütünün hedefinde kim var? Türkiye’nin sınır güvenliği operasyonuna hayır diyen ya alçak bir vatan hainidir ya da çok aptaldır. — Tuğçe Kazaz (@Tugce_official) October 8, 2019

Source: TRT World