BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian army entered Manbij on Friday for the first time in years, it said in a statement, after the Kurdish YPG militia urged the government of President Bashar al-Assad to protect the town from Turkish attacks.

The army said it would guarantee “full security for all Syrian citizens and others present in the area”.

It was unclear whether the government forces had spread out into the town, where U.S. forces have operated and set up a base earlier this year.