Turkey ground troops enter Syria
Ankara 21 Jan (ANA) - Turkish ground troops have crossed into northern Syria as part of Ankara's campaign to rid the border area of Kurdish fighters, Turkey's PM says.

Binali Yildirim said the aim was to establish a 30km (19-mile) "safe zone" deep inside Syria, Turkish reports say. But the Kurdish YPG militia says it has repelled Turkish troops in Afrin.

Turkey's operation, announced Saturday, risks increasing tensions with the US, which was supporting the YPG in the fight against Islamic State jihadists.

The YPG (Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units) is part of a US-backed alliance with a number of ethnic Arab militias called the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF has said it will have no choice but to defend itself if attacked.

State-run Anadolu news agency said that Turkish troops, accompanied by pro-Turkey rebels from the Free Syrian Army, had already advanced some 5km (3 miles) into Syrian territory. No further details about the 30km security zone were given.

But a spokesperson for the YPG, Nouri Mahmoudi, said the group had managed to repel Turkish troops and "they have been forced to retreat".
Turkey's military said it had hit 45 targets on Sunday, as part of its air and ground campaign dubbed "Olive Branch".

It earlier said it had taken out 153 targets belonging to Kurdish militants, although it is unclear if this includes Sunday's figures.(ANA)
FA/ANA/21 January 2018-----