[ April 22, 2024 ]
Turkish military working with Free Syria Army members have captured the city of Afrin in the northern Kurdish area of Syria.
And now they’re moving on to spots in Iraq.
Is this a case of Turkey dictator Recep Tayyip Erdogan trying to restore the Ottoman Empire?
Story continues below advertisement
Some say yes.
From Israel National News:
Last week the Turkish military and its ally, the Free Syrian Army, finally succeeded in capturing the city of Afrin in the most northern Kurdish autonomous canton in Syria.
The Kurdish militia YPG decided to evacuate its forces after the Turks and their allies had encircled the city from three sides, dealing a severe blow to Kurdish autonomy aspirations in Syria.
Turkish dictator Recep Tayyip Erdoğan used the victory to make new threats against the Kurds in both Syria and Iraq, while vowing not to leave Afrin “before the job is done”.
The Turkish government claims 3747 YPG fighters have died in the illn-named ‘Operation Olive Branch’ which lasted for more than two months. On the Turkish side 42 soldiers died while 159 fighters of the Free Syrian Army lost their lives, according to Russian state-controlled media.
Approximately 200,000 people were displaced as a result of the Turkish offensive which came to an abrupt end after the Kurds decided not to engage in urban warfare and left Afrin under the cover of civilian convoys.
There have been reports about looting by Erdogan’s forces after the fall of Afrin.
Turkish soldiers broke into shops and stole food but also other goods and even a number of motorcycles, according to Arab media.
On Sunday, the Turkish authorities reported that the Afrin canton was under “complete control” with the state-controlled Anadolu news agency reporting the Turkish army had started to sweep mines and explosives in anticipation of the return of the civilian population.
Experts on Turkey now say that the Afrin operation is another indication Erdogan is working to restore the Ottoman empire which included areas in Syria and Iraq such as Sinjar and Afrin.
The Turkish regime released a movie about the offensive in Afrin in which the victory over the Kurds was labeled a “conquest”, while state-controlled media used the same term to describe the fall of Afrin .
Fears that Erdogan will not stop his second intervention in Syria after the fall of Afrin seem therefore to be justified.
He will try to ‘liberate’ other parts of Syria and even Iraq where the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) has a foothold in the Sinjar region.
The hotheaded Turkish strongman has vowed he will now order his forces to move in the direction of the predominantly Sunni Arab city of Manbij which was liberated from ISIS by the Arab/Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in 2016.
This will most likely pit the Turkish military against NATO ally the United States, which has vowed it has no intention to leave Manbij.
During a meeting in Istanbul of Erdogan’s AKP party the Turkish dictator said he “won’t take steps backward from here”.
He then said he had spoken with Russian president Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump about his plans to cleanse Manbij and the other two Kurdish cantons in Syria from ‘terrorists,’ a term he also uses to demonize his opponents in Turkey.
‘We won’t take steps backward from here. We are on the side of the suffering and the oppressed,’” Erdogan told his supporters while claiming that 160,000 Syrian “brothers and sisters” are now able to return home.
He meant a part of the Sunni Syrian Arab refugees who fled to Turkey as a result of the Syrian civil war.
A senior Trump official reacted by vowing the U.S. “has no intention to leave Manbij” which has a contingent of 2,000 American Special Forces which have been assisting the SDF in its battle against ISIS.
“US forces are located in Manbij. We have made it very clear with the Turkish government that we will continue to operate there,” State Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauert said during a press conference last week.
Incoming Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is expected not to execute a compromise which was reached by his predecessor Rex Tillerson, who last month brokered a deal with Erdogan about shared control of Manbij.
Pompeo is no fan of Erdogan and labeled Turkey “an Islamist dictatorship” after the botched coup in July 2016.
There’s more.
In southeastern Afrin, Erdogan’s forces could be on the edge of a confrontation with the Syrian army and its allies after they seized four villages and are now approaching a region which is under Syrian army control.
Unnamed sources told the Iranian Fars News Agency “Turkish forces have approached the regions near the two towns of Nobl and al-Zahra which are under the Syrian army’s control now.”
After the new Turkish intervention in Syria, Assad’s forces made inroads to Idlib which neighbors Afrin and from there they proceeded in the direction of Afrin.
As for Iraq, Erdogan has repeatedly warned the Turkish army could come to Sinjar “overnight”.
“If (Baghdad) cannot (make an end to the PKK presence), we may turn up in Sinjar suddenly one night and clean up the PKK there,” Erdogan said last Monday about the impending Turkish invasion of northern Iraq which he dubbed “Operation Tigris Shield”.
His remarks drew the ire of the central government in Baghdad which announced its absolute rejection of any foreign intervention in the territories under its control.
It didn’t stop Erdogan from ordering new airstrikes on PKK bases in northern Iraq after which the PKK announced it would withdraw 2,000 fighters from Sinjar.
Some media reports said the Turks had already invaded northern Iraq.
It was another indication that the Turkish dictator is waging a “personal war”, as one pundit put it, against the Kurds who dreamt to establish an independent state even before the allied forces divided the Middle East after WWI and created artificial states.
The Truth Must be Told
Your contribution supports independent journalism
Please take a moment to consider this. Now, more than ever, people are reading Geller Report for news they won't get anywhere else. But advertising revenues have all but disappeared. Google Adsense is the online advertising monopoly and they have banned us. Social media giants like Facebook and Twitter have blocked and shadow-banned our accounts. But we won't put up a paywall. Because never has the free world needed independent journalism more.
Everyone who reads our reporting knows the Geller Report covers the news the media won't. We cannot do our ground-breaking report without your support. We must continue to report on the global jihad and the left's war on freedom. Our readers’ contributions make that possible.
Geller Report's independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our work is critical in the fight for freedom and because it is your fight, too.
Please contribute here.
or
Make a monthly commitment to support The Geller Report – choose the option that suits you best.
Quick note: We cannot do this without your support. Fact. Our work is made possible by you and only you. We receive no grants, government handouts, or major funding.Tech giants are shutting us down. You know this. Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Adsense, Pinterest permanently banned us. Facebook, Google search et al have shadow-banned, suspended and deleted us from your news feeds. They are disappearing us. But we are here.
Subscribe to Geller Report newsletter here— it’s free and it’s essential NOW when informed decision making and opinion is essential to America's survival. Share our posts on your social channels and with your email contacts. Fight the great fight.
Follow Pamela Geller on Gettr. I am there. click here.
Follow Pamela Geller on Trump's social media platform, Truth Social. It's open and free.
Remember, YOU make the work possible. If you can, please contribute to Geller Report.
Join The Conversation. Leave a Comment.
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spammy or unhelpful, click the - symbol under the comment to let us know. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
If you would like to join the conversation, but don't have an account, you can sign up for one right here.
If you are having problems leaving a comment, it's likely because you are using an ad blocker, something that break ads, of course, but also breaks the comments section of our site. If you are using an ad blocker, and would like to share your thoughts, please disable your ad blocker. We look forward to seeing your comments below.
27 Comments
6 years ago
Ottoman empire flourished during the time the European Christians warring against each others
The Turks merely tapped on what was happening and helping the stupid European Christians to kill each others
On the other side of the Mediterranean the Arabs / Berbers / Bedouins / Persians and Jews were like loose sand, allowing the Turks lots of wiggle spaces to set up their strategic points for their power expansion
Unfortunately, time changes, but the European Christians are still stupid as ever, and the Middle East is still as chaotic as ever
The only ‘natural enemy’ for the Turks are not Europeans, not Arabs, not Jews, not Persians, but the Mongoloids
First encounter — 1141 — the Turks were decisively defeated
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Qatwan
A hundred of years or so later, the Golden Horde from Mongolia wiped out Turkish empire
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasions_of_Anatolia
Now the Turks are thinking of extending their power into China via Xinjiang — The third conflict in between the Turks and the Mongoloids might result in a total annihilation of the Turks, as a race
6 years ago
Reply to
Kalambong Kalambong
Let’s not forget Sep 11. The attack in NYC (the WTC towers), the pentagon,… it was an anniversary date. Wast the attack a rebirth, a restart, revenge for Sep. 11, 1683 (Vienna, Austria)? A new dawn for jihad? If you’re not familiar with this day in 1683, kindly, I ask you to take a look, you may be surprised at what you read. I think it’s EXTREMELY important. Is it more than a coincidence?
F- pisslam.
6 years ago
Reply to
Dagonet
Yes September 11, 1683 was an EXTREMELY important date for European history….and Europe’s freedom. And September 11 was and is an important date for Muslims. It was the date of the 2001 Nine Eleven Muslim attack on America. It was also the date in 1683 when the powerful Muslim Ottoman Empire was making it’s biggest attack on Europe. IF the Ottoman Empire was successful in taking Vienna Austria on that date….they would have been in a great position to conquer the rest of Europe. The Gates of Vienna on September 11, 1683 was a do or die situation for Christian Europe.
If Christian Europe could not hold back the Ottoman Empire army at that point, it would have been ALL OVER for Christian Europe and Europe would have become Islamic.
Fortunately, on September 11 and 12 of 1683, Christian European warriors….led by Polish King Jan Sobieski, decisively defeated the Muslim Ottoman Empire Army and saved Europe from Islamic domination and Sharia Law. IF NOT for these Christian warriors….Europe for the past several hundred years into today would be under oppressive Muslim Sharia Law…and Europe would NOT have been Europe.
Here is a video on that fateful day of Polish King John Sobieski and his forces repelling the Islamic Ottoman Empire at the Gates of Vienna September 11, 1683
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F4hNHYC8GMM&t=70s
6 years ago
I do not think that Shia Iran will allow the Sunnis to expand their empire and I hope they wipe each other out.
Good riddance.
6 years ago
Wow! At least now I feel a bit vindicated. I’ve been making this point for years. Funny how Pamela is leaving out Europe from the mix. It’s been very clear that Turkey intent has been the re-establishment of the Ottoman Empire for years now. Obama just moved the time table up. With the help of Germany of course.
6 years ago
Reply to
Jon Lorensen
oh yes, we can always count on Germany to do something very very wrong, or evil
6 years ago
Erdogan is not only tyrannical but a Muslim; warning bells should be reverberating in the heads of the Western leaders. Wrong; Erdogan and Islam are not the enemies of civilization, the enemy of humankind are the Jews, specifically Israel.
Ironically, our most stalwart Ally, Israel, has been maltreated, cheated and used as a doormat by presidents, especially Obama and the loathsome Carter. The electing of President Trump has ended this fair-weather alliance with Israel. Israel realizes as do Americans that the coalition is strong and binding. Erdogan, predator-like is watching, stalking this geopolitical alliance and is not amused; he is capable of any evildoing, as has been proven throughout his presidency.
Our most significant and most solid Ally is Israel; it burns the onions of the EU, the UN and of course, the entire Middle East.
6 years ago
Turkey continues to exploit the purchase of a nuclear power plant from Russia as a pretext to build an indignious Uranium enrichment capacity. The quantity of Low Enriched Uranium required by the reactor each year could with further enrichment fuel 1,000, 12 kiloton to 22 kiloton bombs (Hiroshima and Nagasaki sized). How much you bet that Turkey intends to divert some of the reactor fuel produced by its overt gas centrifuge cascade to a covert facility where it is further enriched into fissile material?
6 years ago
Sounds good to me. Bring it on! Remember Malta, Vienna, Lemnos, Lepanto!
6 years ago
I’m suprised the Turks haven’t attacked US forces stationed there. Isn’t this what we need in order to go to war and take them out?
ErDOG wasn’t talking to Putin (and Trump), he’s working for Putin. This POS is a politician having fun with power and support from Putin, he’s his B-. Putin is using Turkey to F- with us.
6 years ago
I’m sorry to have to say it, but America has made a mistake backing Turkey and stuffing it with western military equipment, the whole policy is an out dated relic of the cold war. In the recent past Turkey was secular.
Turkey is now on a path any Venetian or Orthodox Christian would have recognised at any time during the last 500 years.
Dump the Turk before you have to fight him {which you may end up doing anyway}.
6 years ago
The turks are logistically stretched, they have to get supplies to their army, which is reduced to looting to survive. What may have been intended for turkish military use will end up on the black market. muslims are not known to be honest in their dealing with anyone, including each other, this is going to cost turkey all the money it extorts from the european union.
6 years ago
Reply to
harbidoll
Trade is always good, plus with better roads, China can take control of more islamic republics.
6 years ago
And keep in mind Turkey does so because it is steadily being provided not only by billions but also with weapons made in Germay. And now Turkey, who by the way still IS a candidate for EU membership, is seriously threatening Greece (an EU member) with invasion. Just let that sink in!
6 years ago
Armenia and Greece better begin getting armed and angry.
6 years ago
Erdogan trying to restore the Ottoman Empire is like a gnat crawling up an elephant’s leg with rape on its mind. If you saw the movie “Lawrence of Arabia”(’62) or read Lawrence’s book “Revolt in the Desert”(’25) on which the movie was based, you saw how monumentally the Turks lost it in WWI after they had sided with Germany.
6 years ago
Good chance the Turks will strike the American forces . I don’t know what will happen but I hope the Americans kick their tail.
6 years ago
Even my secular tour guide in Turkey, who didnt like Erdogan, was for restoring the “glorious Days” of Ottoman Empire! The word Empire is a dirty word in the West but She & many think it is/will be Rightious & Just..
6 years ago
When most people think of tragedy and oppression in European history, they think of Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union. Indeed these were horrible terrible regimes which launched a lot of terror and oppression across Europe and this occurred within the last hundred years, which is relatively recent from a historical perspective. But what most people don’t realize, is that just several hundred years prior to Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, there was a virtually equal menace to Europe. The Islamic Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Empire for hundreds of years up to the Battle of Vienna on September 11, 1683…..was constantly banging away at Eastern, Southern and Central Europe. The Ottoman Empire was constantly attacking and trying to dominate Europe. Fortunately, the folks from Eastern, Southern and Central Europe repelled these constant Ottoman Empire invasions and kept Europe safe from being Islamic today.
Interestingly, Western Europe was never really affected by the constant Islamic Ottoman Empire attacks. Maybe that’s why Western Europe today is so much more accepting of Islamic “refugees”. They never learned the lessons of their Non-West European brothers and sisters when it comes to Islam.
6 years ago
Reply to
Richard Harris
so true. I didn’t know however, that it was on September 11. What’s up with that date?
6 years ago
You have Iran getting belligerent, now you have Turkey acting up. The dragon of the East has also been riled. The bear is growling in the corner.
Anyone ordered World War III? Your dinners ready…..
6 years ago
Okay Trump, it’s time to send out Bolton.
6 years ago
Erdogan will soon be setting up the Islamic Caliphate in Jerusalem: http://www.jerusalemcaliphate.com/
