The National Army of the National Coalition and an ally of Turkey expanded its deployment around the city of Tel Abyad in the northern Raqqa countryside, which it seized on Sunday, as part of Operation Peace Spring, launched by the Turkish army in eastern Syria on Oct. 7, 2019.
The National Army said on Telegram that it had taken full control over the following villages: al-Manqlah and al-Shaeebiyeh, south of Tel Abyad; and the villages of al-Sakriyeh, Bir Atwan, Sen al-Deeb, al-Muhra, and Khalil Yusef on the western front of the city.
A commander in the National Army told Alsouria Net that districts of Ras al-Ayn had seen heavy clashes in an attempt to take full control over the city, along with the previous artillery and air bombardment on Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) positions.
On Sunday, the National Army units, with Turkish support, took control over the city of Tel Abyad and reached the international M4 highway and the town of Ayn Eissa in the northern Raqqa countryside.
The expansion of the National Army deployment in Tel Abyad coincides with the Assad regime announcing that its forces will enter a number of villages and towns in the Raqqa and Hassakeh provinces, in accordance with a deal signed with the SDF days ago.
The Self-Administration’s Hawar news agency said that the SDF had destroyed military vehicles and and an armored car when it struck a Turkish army and National Army convoy in the Tel Tamer countryside.
The agency said that Turkish warplanes had bombed the city of Ras al-Ayn along with heavy clashes on a number of fronts.
Circumstances of the Turkish military operation in eastern Syria changed over the last two days, after the order by US President Donald Trump to withdraw his forces from northern Syria and the subsequent announcement by the SDF that it had reached a deal with the Assad regime for it to deploy its forces in the border regions.
In addition, the city of Manbij has been at the top of discussions about eastern Syria after Assad’s forces deployed and the Russian Defense Ministry announced that these forces had taken full control, after the National Army announced the start of military operations to capture it.
In the latest developments seen in eastern Syria, the international Security Council on Wednesday will hold an emergency meeting to discuss the Turkish military operation, which Turkey announced last Wednesday in the areas east of the Euphrates in Syria.
According to the Russian TASS news agency, the countries of Belgium, France, Germany, Britain and Poland have called for a discussion of the Turkish operation and the developments that led to it, which has seen waves of displacement, according to the United Nations.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
