SDF Commanders Flee to Turkey, Finance Officer Killed

File photo: Fighters with the Syrian Democratic Forces (AFP Photo/Delil Souleiman)
File photo: Fighters with the Syrian Democratic Forces (AFP Photo/Delil Souleiman)
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SDF Commanders Flee to Turkey, Finance Officer Killed

File photo: Fighters with the Syrian Democratic Forces (AFP Photo/Delil Souleiman)
File photo: Fighters with the Syrian Democratic Forces (AFP Photo/Delil Souleiman)

Kurdish commanders from the Syrian Democratic Forces, carrying the Turkish nationality, have been recently escaping to Turkey, reports said Sunday.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that a Turkish Kurd SDF finance official was killed while attempting to cross the border to Turkey.

The official "serves as a finance officer in the Syrian Democratic Forces. He was trying to escape to Turkey with large sums of money in his possession, while another person was escorting him,” the Observatory said.

It said the official planned to cross into Turkey through Jatli village and Qarmani town on the border where Turkish vehicles were waiting for him.

“However, after repeated visits to the area, he was tracked by SDF intelligence members and was shot dead while attempting to escape. There were no further details on the fate of the person escorting him,” SOHR said.

The London-based watchdog said it recently monitored similar incidents, which suggest that the escape of SDF commanders from Turkey’s Kurds is on the rise.

“In the past few days, another finance official in al-Derbasiyah managed to escape with large sums of cash after coordinating with Turkey,” the Observatory said.

It added that a Turkish-born woman, who serves as an SDF commander in Raqqa, and another official responsible for tunnels in Kobani have also managed to flee to Turkey.

Separately, an armed clash erupted Sunday among Turkish-backed factions in north Hasaka.

The fighting took place between “Al-Hamzat Division” faction and “Sultan Suleiman Shah” faction in the area between the villages of Al-Dadoya and Al-Arisha in rural Ras al-Ain, north of Hasaka province.

No casualties were reported.

The Observatory said the residents demanded the demilitarization of their city.



Netanyahu: Nasrallah's Death Will Change Balance of Power in Region

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
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Netanyahu: Nasrallah's Death Will Change Balance of Power in Region

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the 79th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Saturday that the killing of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was a historical turning point that could change the balance of power in the Middle East though he warned of “challenging days” ahead.

"Nasrallah was not a terrorist, he was the terrorist," Netanyahu said in a statement, in his first public remarks since Nasrallah's killing in airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Friday.

Netanyahu said the killings of top Hezbollah commanders was not enough and he decided Nasrallah also needed to be killed.

He blamed Nasrallah for being “the architect” of a plan to “annihilate” Israel.

"Nasrallah's killing was a necessary step toward achieving the goals we have set, returning residents of the north safely to their homes and changing the balance of power in the region for years to come," Netanyahu said.