4 civilians dead, 37 injured in Syria bomb blasts

RAS AL-AYN, AFRIN, AL-HASAKAH, Syria

At least four civilians, including two children, were killed and 37 others injured in three bomb attacks in northern Syria, local security sources said on Saturday.

Terrorists detonated an explosives-laden vehicle at a marketplace in Ras al-Ayn district, near the Turkey-Syria border, killing two children and injuring four civilians. The injured were taken to hospital and a fire sparked by the bomb blast was extinguished by firefighters.

The Syrian National Army and local security forces believed the attack was carried out by the YPG/PKK terror group.

Another car bomb explosion took place near a bakery in the town of Jindires in Syria’s northwestern Afrin district, killing one civilian and injuring eight others.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Separately, one civilian was killed and 25 others injured in a grenade attack in the city center of the northeastern Al-Hasakah province, local sources said on Saturday.

The attack was carried out by the Shabiha militias loyal to Bashar al-Assad regime, it added.

The local militia group Shabiha, currently also backed by Iran, was founded by the Assad regime to suppress the peaceful demonstrations which began in 2011.

Ras al-Ayn was liberated from YPG/PKK terrorists on Oct. 12, 2019 as part of Turkey's Operation Peace Spring. It was launched to secure Turkey's borders by eliminating the terror group from northern Syria, east of the Euphrates River, aid in the safe return of Syrian refugees, and ensure Syria's territorial integrity.

The terrorists, however, continue attacks in Ras al-Ayn, and the nearby city of Tal Abyad, despite their withdrawal from the border area following negotiations between the US and Turkey on Oct. 17, 2019.

In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK – listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the EU – has been responsible for the deaths of nearly 40,000 people, including women, children, and infants. The YPG is PKK's Syrian offshoot.

Since 2016, Turkey has launched a trio of successful anti-terror operations across its border in northern Syria to prevent the formation of a terror corridor and to enable the peaceful settlement of residents: Euphrates Shield (2016), Olive Branch (2018), and Peace Spring (2019).

* Writing by Ahmet Gencturk and Gozde Bayar