'Or We'll Force Them Out': Kurdish PYD Demands Turkey's Withdrawal From Syria

The Kurdish Democratic Union Party demanded an immediate withdrawal of Turkish forces from Syria after Ankara had launched an operation to liberate the city of Jarablus from Daesh.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) demands that Turkey immediately withdraws its forces from the territory of Syria, a representative for PYD in France, Khaled Isa, told Sputnik on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Turkish tanks entered Syria as part of an operation to free the border town of Jarablus from militants.

"Turkey is trying to turn its indirect occupation of Syria into a direct one," Isa said. "We demand that Turkey immediately withdraws from the territory of Syria, stops supporting terrorist groups in Syria, otherwise we will force them out of our territory."

Ankara announced early on Wednesday that Turkish forces, reinforced by US-led coalition aircraft, had begun a military operation dubbed "Euphrates Shield" to clear the Syrian border town of Jarablus of Daesh militants.

Turkey's operation in northern Syria is aimed at stopping the threats posed by Daesh (banned in Russia) and Kurdish militants, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

Ankara considers PYD an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militant organization outlawed in Turkey.