French troops providing artillery support for Kurdish militants: Anadolu

The French special forces have installed six artillery batteries in the areas held by Kurdish militants, Anadolu says
FILE PHOTO.
Sunday, 20 May 2018 19:38

The French special forces have installed six artillery batteries in the areas held by Kurdish militants near the Syrian-Iraqi border, Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency reported on Sunday citing sources.

The batteries were installed north of Baguz village in Syria's Deir ez-Zor province, which is controlled by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), an affiliate of the militant Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) outlawed in Turkey as a terrorist organization, Anadolu reported.

French troops have recently increased their presence in some Kurdish-held areas in Syria, including Manbij, al-Hasakah, Ayn Issa and Raqqah, the report said.

In March, French President Emmanuel Macron promised support for the Syrian Kurdish units.

On Thursday, a convoy of 20 vehicles with around 70 French servicemen was stopped in the Qamishli area of the northeastern Syrian province of Hasakah at a checkpoint manned by Syrian government troops. The YPG representatives arrived at the checkpoint and confirmed that the French convoy was heading for their areas. The government troops decided to free the French servicemen and let them to the Kurdish-controlled areas.