Syria Kurds call up civilians to fight Turkey offensive

Qamishli (Syria) - Ankara said on Tuesday it would "shortly" begin an offensive into northern Syria, as it sent more armoured vehicles to the border.

The Kurdish administration in northeastern Syria called up civilians on Wednesday to defend the region against a feared Turkish assault, believed to be imminent.
"We announce three days of general mobilisation in northern and eastern Syria," it said in a statement, urging all civilians to "head to the border with Turkey... to resist during this delicate historical moment".
It also called on Kurds in Syria and abroad to protest against Ankara's planned offensive.
Ankara said on Tuesday it would "shortly" begin an offensive into northern Syria, as it sent more armoured vehicles to the border.
Turkey's communications director Fahrettin Altun wrote in the Washington Post that Kurdish forces can either "defect" or Turkey will "have no choice but to stop them from disrupting our counter-Daesh efforts".
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani called on Turkey to show restraint and avoid military action in Northern Syria, while Russian President Vladimir Putin told his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan by phone to avoid any steps in Syria that could damage its peace process.