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SDF Denies ISIS Presence in Afrin, Acknowledges Foreign Fighters in its Ranks

Plumes of smoke rise on the air from inside Syria, as seen from the outskirts of the border town of Kilis, Turkey on January 20, 2018. (AP)
Plumes of smoke rise on the air from inside Syria, as seen from the outskirts of the border town of Kilis, Turkey on January 20, 2018. (AP)
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SDF Denies ISIS Presence in Afrin, Acknowledges Foreign Fighters in its Ranks

Plumes of smoke rise on the air from inside Syria, as seen from the outskirts of the border town of Kilis, Turkey on January 20, 2018. (AP)
Plumes of smoke rise on the air from inside Syria, as seen from the outskirts of the border town of Kilis, Turkey on January 20, 2018. (AP)

The Syrian Democratic Forces denied on Wednesday Turkish military claims that the ISIS terrorist group was present in the Afrin region in northern Syria where it has been waging a military offensive against Kurdish factions.

“The whole world knows ISIS is not present in Afrin,” Redur Xelil, a senior SDF official, told Reuters.

He said the Turkish military had greatly exaggerated SDF casualties, though he declined to say how many had been killed.

The Turkish army had announced on Tuesday that at least 260 People’s Protection Units and ISIS members had died in the offensive that it launched last week.

Xelil said that the SDF had killed dozens of Turkish soldiers and their allies in the Free Syrian Army. He declined however from giving an exact figure.

In addition, he revealed that foreign fighters, including Americans, Britons and Germans, were fighting with the Kurdish factions against the Turkish offensive.

Meanwhile, a US official expected President Donald Trump to contact his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday to express his concern about Ankara’s Afrin operation.

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Arab World

Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
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Palestinian Authority Says Internet Down in Gaza After Attack on Fibre Optic Cable

Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed
Palestinians charge their mobile phones from a point powered by solar panels provided by Adel Shaheen, an owner of an electric appliances shop, as electricity remains cut during the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip October 19, 2023. REUTERS/Mohammed

The Palestinian Authority said internet and fixed-line communication services were down in Gaza on Thursday following an attack on the territory's last fibre optic cable it blamed on Israel.

"All internet and fixed-line communication services in the Gaza Strip have been cut following the targeting of the last remaining main fibre optic line in Gaza," the PA's telecommunications ministry said in a statement, accusing Israel of attempting to cut Gaza off from the world, AFP reported.

"The southern and central Gaza Strip have now joined Gaza City and the northern part of the Strip in experiencing complete isolation for the second consecutive day," the ministry said in a statement.

It added that its maintenance and repair teams had been unable to safely access the sites where damage occurred to the fibre optic cable.

"The Israeli occupation continues to prevent technical teams from repairing the cables that were cut yesterday", it said, adding that Israeli authorities had prevented repairs to other telecommunication lines in Gaza "for weeks and months".

The Palestinian Red Crescent said the communication lines were "directly targeted by occupation forces".

It said the internet outage was hindering its emergency services by impeding communication with first responder teams in the field.

"The emergency operations room is also struggling to coordinate with other organisations to respond to humanitarian cases."

Maysa Monayer, spokeswoman for the Palestinian communication ministry, told AFP that "mobile calls are still available with very limited capacity" in Gaza for the time being.

Now in its 21st month, the war in Gaza has caused massive damage to infrastructure across the Palestinian territory, including water mains, power lines and roads.