CAIRO: Arab foreign ministers on Saturday condemned Turkey´s “aggression”in Syria where it is pressing an offensive against Kurdish forces, callingfor an immediate withdrawal of Ankara´s troops.
The statement came after an emergency session of the Arab League in Cairocalled for by Egypt to discuss Turkey´s assault on the Kurds, who havecarved out a fragile semi-autonomy in Syria´s northeast.
Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit slammed the Turkish attack as an”invasion of an Arab land”.
The ministers called for “ending the aggression and the immediate andunconditional withdrawal of Turkey from all of Syria´s land”, the statementsaid.
The group said Ankara´s offensive was a “direct threat to Arab nationalsecurity”, adding they would consider “urgent measures to confront theTurkish aggression”.
The potential responses included diplomatic and economic actions, as wellas “military cooperation to confront the Turkish aggression”, the statementsaid.
The statement drew swift condemnation from Turkey.
Turkey´s communications director, Fahrettin Altun, condemned the group for”mischaracterizing Turkey´s counter-terrorism operation in northeasternSyria as an ´invasion´ in a statement issued earlier today”.
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“We can only take pride in the fact that governments, which did not mindthe terrorist organisation PKK´s occupation of a predominantly Arab area,the displacement of Arab civilians from their lands, or the destruction ofArab villages, are unsettled by #OperationPeaceSpring,” he wrote on Twitter.
Ankara says the main Kurdish militia in Syria is a “terrorist” group withlinks to its own outlawed Kurdistan Workers´ Party (PKK), which has beenwaging an insurgency in Turkey for three decades.
The foreign ministers of Iraq and Lebanon also called for Syria´s ArabLeague membership to be unfrozen.
Damascus has been suspended from the pan-Arab bloc since 2011 over itsbloody crackdown on protesters.
The Kurds served as the main ground partner in the US-led fight against theIslamic State militant group in Syria.
Ankara´s military campaign appeared almost inevitable after PresidentDonald Trump announced Sunday that US troops deployed in northern Syriawere pulling back from the border. -APP/AFP
