UN Security Council to hold emergency meeting Thursday after Turkey’s military action: diplomats
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The United Nations Security Council is set to meet on Thursday following Turkey’s military action against the Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeastern Syria, diplomats said on Wednesday.
According to Amelie de Montchalin, the French Minister of European Affairs, Britain, France, and Germany called for the meeting shortly after the launch of the operation on Wednesday evening.
De Montchalin said France “strongly condemns the attack,” adding Britain, France, and Germany will release a joint statement soon.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the launch of the incursion moments before Turkish warplanes and artillery began shelling Syria’s predominantly Kurdish northeastern town of Serekaniye.
Read More: Turkish warplanes start shelling northeast Syria, SDF spokesperson says
The attack came days after a White House statement on late Sunday, explaining that American forces would withdraw from areas in northern Syria. Turkey claims its operation is meant to eliminate “a terror corridor” on the country’s southern borders.
Elsewhere, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also spoke out against the operation, stating that Germany “condemns the Turkish offensive in the northeast of Syria in the strongest possible terms,” the Associated Press reported
Maas also requested Turkey to halt military action warning it threatened “a further humanitarian catastrophe and further displacement of persons.”
The German diplomat reminded that Syria needs stability after eight years of war and that the first step should be to summon a constitutional committee in the near future.
“We call on Turkey to end its offensive and to pursue its security interests in a peaceful manner.”
Waves of people in Serekaniye began to leave their homes on Wednesday to flee the Turkish shelling.
Initial reports indicate that the Turkish shelling has killed two civilians and wounded 11 people.
The Kurdish-led SDF has been America’s main ally in the war against the so-called Islamic State in Syria.
Editing by Karzan Sulaivany