Ankara – Some 46 Turkish military personnel have been killed and 225 otherswounded in the 58-day long operation ‘Olive Branch’, the General Staff ofthe Turkish Armed Forces announced Sunday.

The Turkish army units and militants of the so-called Free Army of Syriaoccupied the northern Syrian city of Afrin Sunday morning, according to theIslamic Republic News Agency.

The Turkish news network ‘SAT 7 Turk’ said during clashes and occupation ofAfrin by the Turkish army and militants of the Free Army of Syria, 3,603members of the People’s Protection Unit (YPG), Democratic Union Party (PYD)and the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) were killed.

None of Turkish media outlets has released any exact figure on thecasualties of the Turkish-protected militants belonging to the so-calledFree Army of Syria but an entity calling itself the Syrian Observatory forHuman Rights reported a few days ago that 409 militants of the Free Army ofSyria had been killed in the Afrin operations.

No official or unofficial source has so far announced the number ofcivilians killed in Afrin but according to media over 200,000 residents ofthe city have been rendered homeless.

The Turkish army and militants of the so-called Fee Army of Syria launchedmilitary operation ‘Olive Branch’ in the northern Syrian city of Afrin onJanuary 20.

The Damascus government has called Turkey’s military operations in Afrinand other northern areas of Syria an ‘act of occupation’ demanding animmediate pullout of Turkish military units from Syrian soil.

Violating Syria’s national sovereignty by Turkey and its military operationinside that country has been condemned by international circles andindependent governments and has even drawn some criticism inside Turkey toan extent that nearly 1,000 of those voicing opposition to the militaryoperations have been detained by the Ankara government.