2018-06-13
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SULAIMANI — Italy has sent troops to Deir ez-Zor province in eastern Syria to support People’s Protection Units (YPG), local sources say.
Speaking on Tuesday (June 12) to Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency on condition of anonymity, local sources said that Italian troops had been dispatched nearly a week ago to areas controlled by the YPG near the Iraqi border.
The troops arrived last week in the city of Hasakah from Iraq before heading to Deir ez-Zor, according to the sources.
They were then sent to a US military base in the oil-rich al-Omar region, the local sources added.
The Italian soldiers include military advisers supporting US and French troops in the operation against Islamic State (ISIS) militants, Anadolu cited the sources as saying.
However, the Italian troops have yet to participate in any military operations against ISIS.
The SDF, an alliance dominated by the YPG and backed by US-led coalition air strikes and special forces, launched an offensive against ISIS in Deir ez-Zor and Hasakah last month.
The group fighting ISIS in Syria said on Monday that it had liberated 12 villages and 15 hamlets during the operation in northeastern Syria.
(NRT)