The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that a commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) was killed, and his escort was injured in an attack by a Turkish drone near Nusaybeen crossing on the border with Türkiye in al-Qamishli.
The Observatory pointed out that the attack came a week after SDF Chief Mazloum Abdi survived an assassination attempt by a Turkish drone in the perimeter of al-Suleimaniyah airport in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
It noted that this is the first attack since Feb. 22, when a Turkish drone targeted a civil car on the road between al-Qamishli and al-Qahtaniyah.
The attack left a civilian dead, and an Internal Security Forces (Asayish) commander injured.
The Observatory reported 11 drone attacks in the areas controlled by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria since the beginning of this year.
The strikes killed five civilians, including a child and a woman, six military personnel, and a car driver, and injured more than five people. The targets focused on al-Hasakah, al-Raqqa, and the countryside of Aleppo.
The US-backed SDF indicated that Abdi and a US forces delegation were at Sulaymaniyah airport in Iraqi Kurdistan after it was targeted last Friday in an attack attributed to Türkiye.
SDF spokesman Farhad Shami told AFP that Abdi was in Sulaymaniyah in the framework of joint work with the counter-terrorism service in Iraqi Kurdistan, to coordinate the ongoing efforts against ISIS.
He confirmed the presence of US forces at the airport during the attack without providing any information about the reason for the visit or whether Abdi accompanied them.
The bombing took place at the airport, according to Shami, while Abdi was leaving Sulaymaniyah after holding several meetings.
Earlier, Abdi condemned the attack, saying the support of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) to "its brothers in Syria annoys Türkiye."
The SDF has a good relationship with the PUK led by Jalal Talabani, who visited Abdi in northeastern Syria at the end of last year.
Ankara classifies the Kurdish People's Defense Units (YPG), the main component of the SDF, as a terrorist organization, saying it is an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
For decades, the conflict between Türkiye and the PKK has extended into northern Iraq, where both sides have military outposts or bases.
Ankara carries out air strikes against PKK positions in the Kurdistan region in northern Iraq.
In the past years, the Turkish army has also launched three military operations against Kurdish fighters in Syria, and its drones targeted their areas of control.
