Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has announced that the new leadership of Syria is committed to uprooting separatists in the country. Ankara earlier announced that its military had “neutralized” 32 members of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
An uprising by groups close to Turkey toppled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad last month, and since then Turkish-backed Syrian forces have clashed regularly with Kurdish forces in the north, which Ankara considers terrorists.
“The new administration of Syria is showing an extremely determined position regarding the preservation of the country’s territorial integrity and unified structure,” he said, adding, “They will face the iron fist of Turkey.”