ANKARA – A total of five Turkish troops have been killed since the start ofAnkara’s military operation against Kurdish forces in Syria’s Afrindistrict, the country’s Defense Minister Nurettin Canikli said Tuesday.

“We lost five servicemen during Operation Olive Branch. The total numberof fatalities, including the Free Syrian Army, stands at 29 people,”Canikli said, addressing the parliament.

The minister added the Turkish forces had destroyed “458 terrorist grouptargets and 649 terrorists” during the operation.

[image: Turkish F16 jets]On January 20, the Turkish Armed Forces launched a joint operation with theFree Syrian Army opposition forces against the Kurdish forces in Afrin. Thedistrict is controlled by the US-backed the Kurdish People’s ProtectionUnits (YPG) and Democratic Union Party (PYD) militias, which Ankaraconsiders affiliates of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), designated as aterrorist organization in Turkey and several other countries.

Damascus has strongly condemned Ankara’s actions, with the Syrian ForeignMinistry calling them a violation of the country’s sovereignty.