Turkey advance forces US pullout from north Syria

The US is pulling out all of its troops from northern Syria as Turkey advances its operation against the Kurds.

Defence Secretary Mark Esper said Turkey "likely intends" to extend its attack further than originally planned.

The assault is aimed at forcing out Kurdish forces - the main US ally in the area. They may be seeking help from Syria and Russia, said Mr Esper, and the US would not be defending them.

Later the Kurds said they had agreed Syria would deploy troops in the area.

Syrian state TV had already announced the army was heading north to confront Turkish forces.

More than 130,000 people have fled homes near the conflict, the UN said, warning the figure could soon triple.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Kurdish-led fighters under attack from Turkey, warned last week that they would no longer be able to guard suspected IS members and their families in camps and prisons under their control if the Turkish offensive continued.

And on Sunday, Kurdish officials said nearly 800 relatives of foreign IS members had escaped from Ain Issa, a camp in the north, as clashes raged nearby.

Agencies
 

Dhaka/Nasim