Egypt, Syria and France on Sunday urged Turkey to stop their offensive against Kurdish fighters after the Turkish army and Turkish-backed rebels attempted to attack and enter the Afrin region, a day after Turkey launched fierce air strikes on the city.



French Defense Minister, Florence Parly called for the fighting to stop and suggested the Turkish offensive could "deter Kurdish forces who are at the side" of the international coalition battling Islamic State (ISIS) militants in Syria,” reported AFP.



Also the Egyptian Foreign Affairs ministry rejected the Afrin operation, considering it a “new violation of Syria’s sovereignty.”



Further, the statement added that such operations undermine the ongoing endeavours to reach a political solution, as well as the efforts of counter-terrorism in Syria.



The statement also reiterated Egypt's steadfast stance “towards rejecting military solutions, as they only lead to increasing the suffering of our brotherly Syrian people.”



Moreover, the Syrian president Bashar al-Assad condemned the operation, calling it a Turkish attempt to support terrorism. The Syrian government earlier also denied that it was informed on beforehand of the operation.



However, Michael A. Horowitz, a security analyst, pointed out that on Twitter, “despite Assad's threats to shoot down Turkish planes, Turkish air force started the aerial bombardment of Afrin Canton in northwestern Syria.”