The Washington Post - 02.03.2020

MONDAy, MARCH 2 , 2020. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ RE A

BY LIZ SLY

beirut — Turkey shot down two
warplanes and inflicted heavy
losses on ground forces in north-
western Syria on Sunday as the
two countries edged closer to an
all-out war.
The operation came in retalia-
tion for an airstrike blamed on
the Syrian government that killed
36 Turkish soldiers on Thursday,
Turkey’s Defense Ministry said. It
followed weeks of Turkish threats
to attack Syrian forces if they
continued to advance toward the
Turkish border, risking a new
wave of refugees.
Armed Turkish drones struck
military airports and loyalist bas-
es deep in Syrian government-
held territory as Turkish troops
and allied rebels pushed forward
to drive Syrian troops out of
towns and villages they had re-
captured from opposition forces
in recent weeks.
Russia, Syria’s most important
ally, refrained from intervening
on its behalf for the first time
since the Idlib fighting first
erupted last year, suggesting an
unwillingness by Moscow to al-
low the spiraling confrontation
between Turkey a nd Syria to jeop-
ardize its relationship with Anka-
ra or to escalate into a wider
conflict with an important NATO
member.
The situation on the ground
was fluid, and the progress of the
Turkish-backed offensive was dif-
ficult to assess. But it appeared
the Turkish intervention had suc-
ceeded in halting, and in some
places reversing, weeks of Syrian
government advances into the
last enclave of rebel-held territo-
ry that have sent nearly a million
people fleeing toward Turkey for
safety.
The United Nations has called
the exodus the largest single dis-
placement and one of the biggest
humanitarian catastrophes of the
nine-year Syrian war.
It also underscored the poten-
tial for the battle over this last
sliver of rebel-held territory to
spill beyond Syria. The United
States, an important Turkish ally
that maintains troops in eastern
Syria, and Iran, which has con-
tributed militias to the Syrian
government’s war effort, are both
invested in the outcome.
An Iranian news outlet report-
ed that 21 Iranians had been

killed in Turkish attacks, and the

Iranian-allied Lebanese militia

Hezbollah buried five fighters in

Beirut on Sunday, among eight

killed in the battles.

Turkey’s Defense Ministry said

warplanes had shot down two

Syrian Su-24 fighter jets because

they posed a threat to Turkey’s

forces in the area. The Syrian

pilots ejected and parachuted to

safety behind government lines,

the official Syrian news agency

said.

Syria said it had downed three

Turkish drones and warned that

any aircraft flying over the area

would be treated as hostile and

shot down. “Turkish hostile acts

will not succeed in saving terror-

ists from the strikes of the Syrian

Arab Army,” S ANA, t he state news

agency, quoted an unnamed mili-

tary official as saying.

But Turkey appeared to have

gained the upper hand in a battle

that had seemed to be going

Syria’s way.

Turkish Defense Minister Hu-

lusi Akar said Turkey has killed

2,200 Syrian troops and de-

stroyed large amounts of heavy

weaponry, including 103 tanks,

six air defense systems and 72

Howitzers and rocket launchers,

since the fighting ticked up in

recent days. Turkey said it had

killed three senior Syrian gener-

als in drone strikes.

Turkey has been escalating

military operations against Syria

since the 36 troops were killed.

Officials formally announced the

launch of Operation Spring

Shield on Sunday.

The Turkish figures could not

be independently verified. Danny

Makki, a Syrian analyst who

works in London and Damascus,

said the operation appeared to

have taken a heavy toll on the

Syrian army, which relied on

Russian air support and Iranian-

backed militias for the progress it

had made in recent weeks. He

estimated that hundreds of Syri-

an troops have been killed in

recent days.

“You’ve got Turkish troops

pounding Syrian forces, inflicting

mass casualties and taking out

huge chunks of armor,” he said.

“This is going to limit Syrian

capabilities in Idlib and paralyze

Syrian forces along the front

lines.”

Loyalist Syrians are growing

resentful over Russia’s failure to

come to the army’s rescue as its

losses mount, Makki said. Almost

no Russian warplanes have been

seen over the area since the

Turkish troops were killed Thurs-

day.

“Over the past few days, Russia

has done nothing in the face of an

offensive that is rapidly destroy-

ing the capabilities of the Syrian

army,” Makki said. Although it is

not in Russia’s interest to see the

Syrian army it has supported for

years eroded by Turkey’s superior

military, he said, “Russia’s central

interests in Syria have been se-

cured, whether political or eco-

nomic, so Russia has nothing to

gain by entering into an awkward

and bloody confrontation with

Turkey, which is a member of

NATO.”

The sharp escalation followed

weeks of building tension, during

which Turkish President Recep

Ta yyip Erdogan threatened re-

peatedly to launch a military

operation if the Syrian govern-

ment did not pull all of its troops

back from the territory they had

taken by the end of February. The

airstrike Thursday seemed to

have hardened his resolve.

Turkey acted over the weekend

to fulfill another recent threat,

opening its borders for refugees

and migrants who want to travel

to Europe and triggering a flood

of thousands toward its border

with Greece. Greece closed all

border crossings with Turkey on

Sunday, trapping many hundreds

in a no man’s land between the

two countries.

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Turkey wages offensive aimed at reversing Syrian gains as conflict escalates

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ABOVE: An honor guard Saturday carries the casket of Muhammed Ali Ozer, one of the 36 Turkish soldiers killed Thursday in an airstrike

blamed on Syria. BELOW: Video from Turkey on Sunday shows retaliatory operations on positions in Syrian government-held territory.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES

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