Kurdish YPG

(ANTIMEDIA Op-ed) — According to Reuters, Washington’s main Syrian partner, the U.S.-backed SDF (Syrian Democratic Forces), believes the U.S. military will remain in northern Syria for decades after ISIS is eventually defeated.
The SDF, an alliance of militias composed mainly of the Kurdish YPG movement, believes the U.S. military has a “strategic interest” in staying in the country, SDF spokesman Talal Silo reportedly told Reuters.

(ANTIWAR) — Turkey’s Defense Ministry is claiming that they have assurances from the United States that ongoing arms deliveries to the Kurdish YPG to fight against ISIS are only temporary, and that the US has promised they will take the weapons back from the Kurds as soon as the ISIS fight is over.

(ANTIWAR.COM) Just a day after they bombed a village in the Mayadeen area, near the ISIS capital of Raqqa, US warplanes launched yet more airstrikes, and once again the indications out of the area is that everyone slain in the attacks was a civilian, bringing the two-day toll in excess of 50.

(ANTIWAR.COM) According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, US coalition airstrikes attacked the village of al-Barouda on Tuesday, killing at least 16 civilians, including five children, and wounding a large number of others.

(ANTIWAR) US officials have made much of Kurdish YPG forces attacking the town of Tabqa, which is at least somewhat under ISIS control. Locals are trying to flee the fighting, however, and that seems to be where the US is most involved, attacking and killing a family of eight outside of Tabqa as they tried to get away.

The first reported civilian casualties of the US-backed invasion of the ISIS capital of Raqqa occurred this week.