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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has promised to take Ankaras Syria operation to Idlib after completing the current mission in Afrin, where they are targeting Kurdish militants.

"We want our Syrian brothers and sisters to return to their land, and now we want to do the same in Idlib what we have done in Afrin, Erdogan said.

Its not the first time the Turkish leader has stated that the campaign against Kurdish militia in Syria could actually spread beyond Afrin.

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Our heroic soldiersare making history today in Afrin. And they will make history tomorrow wherever there are terrorists along our borders, the Turkish President said late last month.

On January 20, the Turkish General Staff officially declared the start of the military campaign in Syria's northwestern Afrin region, calling it Operation Olive Branch. Ankara launched airstrikes against Kurdish positions, with Turkish troops advancing into the Kurd-held territories. The Turkish armed forces are supported by the Free Syrian Army (FSA) an Ankara-backed paramilitary opposition group which consists mainly of Syrian Arab and Syrian Turkmen groups, which hold the territories in Afrin.

The Turkish General Staff said last week that as many as 899 fighters of the Syrian Kurdish militias which they said included the Peoples Protection Units (YPG), Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants and Islamic State (IS, former ISIS) terrorists were neutralized since the launch of Operation Olive Branch.

Formed as an armed wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party, the YPG rapidly expanded during the Syrian civil war. The group also fought against IS and received backing from the US-led coalition, which supplied them with weapons.

Such US support has greatly contributed to ongoing hostilities in the Afrin region, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

The US backing of their clients in violation of Washingtons statements in support of the Syrian Arab Republics territorial integrity have led to the escalation in the Afrin region, where there are no government troops at all at the moment, the Ministry said.

In a telephone conversation earlier on Thursday, Erdogan spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin regarding the situation in Syria. They agreed to hold another three-way summit on Syria with Russia, Turkey and Iran; a source in Erdogans administration said. The event is expected to take place in Istanbul.

Erdogan and Putin have also discussed the need to expedite the establishment of observation posts in the de-escalation zone of Idlib governorate, Turkish media report.

In early October, Turkish military forces were deployed to Idlib province to monitor one of four de-escalations zones located there. The proposal to establish the zones, championed by Russia, was finalized in September at a round of Syrian peace talks in Astana.

The first three-way summit between the leaders of Russia, Turkey and Iran, which was aimed at ending the bloodshed in Syria, took place in the southern Russian resort of Sochi in November.

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Dozens of demonstrators clashed with police near the Vatican during the Turkish presidents visit to Rome, as protesters denounced Recep Tayyip Erdogans presence amid Ankaras anti-Kurdish military campaign in Syria.

Despite Pope Francis 24-hour ban on city center demonstrations, around 200 Kurd supporters turned up near Castel SantAngelo on the banks of the River Tiber to stage a sit-in protest. The demonstration turned violent after protesters tried to march closer to Vatican, where Erdogan and Francis were meeting. Some pushed through police cordons to have their voices heard in the Vatican, resulting in two arrests.

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A pro-Kurdish activist group met resistance from police officers as they attempted to break through the security line. Police officers dressed in riot gear and wielding batons pushed back the protesters who shouted Shame, shame.

At least one demonstrator was injured in the scuffles, with pictures from the scene showing a man with a bloody forehead injury lying on the ground.

A demonstration was earlier authorised several blocks away from the Vatican, and some 3,500 police officers were dispatched to Rome in preparation for president Erdogans official visit Monday.

Pope Francis put the city on lockdown to facilitate the safe travel of Erdogans motorcade. The protests took place despite Italian authorities banning protests for one day in green zones, spanning the Vatican, Erdogans hotel and Italian palaces.

READ MORE: Pope Francis jokingly calls gossiping nuns terrorists

Erdogan was returning the gesture by Pope Francis who visited Turkey in 2014. The trip marks the first visit by a Turkish president to the Vatican in 59 years.

The pair met privately for around 50 minutes and discussed the situation in the Middle East, with particular reference to the status of Jerusalem, highlighting the need to promote peace and stability in the region, as well as the condition of Catholics in Turkey and Ankaras reception of refugees, according to a statement from the Vatican.

The meeting concluded with Francis presenting Erdogan with a bronze medallion which featured an "angel of peace who strangles the demon of war as a symbol of a world based on peace and justice."

Erdogans trip to Italy comes as the Turkish army is engaged in a military campaign in Kurdish-held Afrin in northern Syria which sparked a wave of protests abroad. Dubbed Operation Olive Branch, its targeting Kurdish groups such as the PKK and the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) which Ankara considers to be terrorist groups.

Ankara says it wants to prevent Kurdish militias from infiltrating Turkey and aims to create a 30-kilometer secure zone within Syrian territory. While Turkey claims hundreds of terrorists have been killed, the Kurds have accused Turkish troops of targeting civilians. Some 15,000 people have been displaced since the start of the offensive, according to UN figures.

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ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that Turkey will clean its entire border with Syria in a sign that the Turkish offensive on the Syrian Kurdish YPG group in northern Syrias Afrin region could be extended further.

Since Turkeys assault in Afrin began nine days ago, it has increased tensions between Ankara and the United States, which has supported the YPG in other parts of Syria in the fight against Islamic State.

Step by step, we will clean our entire border, Erdogan said in a speech after the army said it had captured Jebel Bursaya, a hill that Turkish media had described as a critical position in recent days.

Erdogan said last week that Turkey might conduct operations eastwards inside Syria all the way to Iraq to clear the YPG from its frontier. Syrian Kurdish officials have pledged to meet any wider Turkish assault with an appropriate response.

More than a week into their offensive, however, Turkey and allied Syrian rebel groups have made only modest progress fighting into hilly terrain against entrenched foes.

The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance of militias of which the YPG is the strongest, had said earlier on Sunday that there was intense fighting in the area.

A war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said Turkey and its allied rebel groups had taken the hill, which overlooks the major Syrian town of Azaz, which they also hold.

The Observatory said Turkish air strikes had killed three people in one family early on Sunday in Afrin. Turkish bombardment also damaged an ancient temple, it said.

Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky

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Erdogan says Turkey will 'clean' entire Syrian border | Reuters

ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - President Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday Turkey would extend its military operation in Syria to the town of Manbij, a move that could potentially bring Turkish forces into confrontation with those of their NATO ally the United States.

Turkeys air and ground Operation Olive Branch in the Afrin region of northern Syria is now in its fifth day, targeting Kurdish YPG fighters and opening a new front in Syrias multi-sided civil war.

A push towards Manbij, in a separate Kurdish-held enclave some 100 km (60 miles) east of Afrin, could threaten U.S. plans to stabilize a swath of northeast Syria.

The United States has around 2,000 special forces troops in Syria, officially as part of an international U.S.-led coalition, assisting the Kurds in battle against Islamic State.

None of the Americans are known to be based in the Afrin area, but they are deployed in the Kurdish-held pocket that includes Manbij. Washington has angered Turkey by providing arms, training and air support to the Syrian Kurdish forces, which Turkey considers enemies.

With the Olive Branch operation, we have once again thwarted the game of those sneaky forces whose interests in the region are different, Erdogan said in a speech to provincial leaders in Ankara.

Starting in Manbij, we will continue to thwart their game.

Differences over Syria policy have already strained Turkeys relations with Washington almost to a breaking point. For the United States, the YPG is a key ally against both Islamic State jihadists and Syrian President Bashar al-Assads forces.

A Turkish operation in Manbij would be fraught with risk due to the presence of the U.S. military personnel in and around the town. They were deployed there last March to deter Turkish and U.S.-backed rebels from attacking each other and have also carried out training missions in Manbij.

President Donald Trump plans to raise the U.S. concerns over the Turkish offensive in a telephone call with Erdogan expected on Wednesday, a senior U.S. official said.

In an interview with Reuters, Turkeys government spokesman said he saw a small possibility that Turkish forces could come face-to-face with the U.S. troops in Manbij.

U.S.-backed Syrian fighters in the Manbij area have deployed to frontlines to confront any Turkish assault and are in contact with the U.S.-led coalition over defending the town, their spokesman Sharfan Darwish said on Wednesday.

We are in full readiness to respond to any attack.

Rockets fired from Afrin struck the Turkish border town of Kilis, killing two people, a Syrian and a Turk, and wounding 11 people in the area, the local governors office said, the latest in what has been a series of such attacks since the start of the operation.

One of the rockets hit a mosque and the two people who were killed were praying at the time, the statement said.

Dozens of combatants have been killed since Turkey launched its offensive, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict in Syria.

Turkish shelling and airstrikes in Afrin have killed 28 civilians, while two civilians were killed as a result of YPG shelling near Azaz, a town held by Turkish-backed opponents of President Bashar al-Assad, the monitoring group said.

Turkey said three of its soldiers had been killed. Observatory head Rami Abdulrahman said 48 Turkey-backed Syrian fighters with Free Syrian Army groups had been killed and that the death toll among the Kurdish YPG so far stood at 42.

The Turkish military said it had killed at least 287 Kurdish fighters and Islamic State militants in the offensive. The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) umbrella group led by the Kurdish YPG said there was no Islamic State presence in Afrin and Turkey had exaggerated the number of dead.

Communication between the United States and Turkey has continued over Syria, despite the countries differences.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he spoke to U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who, he said, had suggested the formation of a 30 km security line inside Syria, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

Turkey has previously sought such buffer zones in parts of Syria near its southern border.

A senior U.S. official said that as of Tuesday the Turks had not been ready to engage in detail on such a proposal.

Bad weather, including heavy rain, has hampered Turkeys offensive. Heavy clouds have hindered air support, limiting advances, and Kurdish militia have retaken some territory.

Turkish troops and allied Syrian fighters have been trying to take the summit of Bursaya Hill, overlooking the eastern approach to Afrin town.

Turkey has not been able yet to shore up its control over any of the villages it has advanced on, said the Observatorys Abdulrahman. He attributed this to fierce resistance from YPG fighters who are from Afrin, and the hilly terrain of the area.

Afrin is separated from Manbij and the rest of the territory held by the Kurdish-led forces by a strip of land held by Assads government forces.

In 2016, the Kurdish-led SDF pushed Islamic State fighters out of Manbij. Erdogan has accused the United States of reneging on a promise to ensure that Kurdish fighters would return the town to Arab control.

U.S., British and German volunteers who fought against Islamic State alongside Kurdish-led forces in Syria are also now in the Afrin area to help confront Turkey, the SDF said.

U.S. Defence Secretary Jim Mattis has said Turkeys offensive is distracting from efforts to defeat Islamic State.

The United States has hoped to use the YPGs control of territory to give it the diplomatic muscle it needs to revive U.N.-led talks in Geneva on a deal that would end Syrias civil war and eventually lead to Assads removal.

Additional reporting by Orhan Coskun, Ercan Gurses Ece Toksabay and Dominic Evans in Ankara; Daren Butler, Ezgi Erkoyun and Ali Kucukgocmen in Istanbul; Writing by David Dolan; Editing by Gareth Jones and Peter Graff

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President Donald Trump warned Turkey against expanding its military offensive against U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters in northern Syria, telling President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that such action could lead to direct conflict with U.S. forces, the White House said.

Trump urged Turkey to deescalate, limit its military actions, and avoid civilian casualties and increases to displaced persons and refugees, the White House said Wednesday in a readout of Trumps call with Erdogan. He urged Turkey to exercise caution and to avoid any actions that might risk conflict between Turkish and American forces.

Turkey said the readout did not accurately reflect the content of the call and that Trump didnt share concerns over the violence.

Turkish forces wait near the Syrian border at Hassa, in Hatay province on Jan. 24.

Photographer: Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images

The White Houses harshly worded statement signaled the growing impatience with moves by Erdogan to crack down on Kurdish fighters who are supported by the U.S. but regarded by Turkey as terrorists. Trump also rebuked Erdogan over recent criticism of the U.S. The Turkish leader has publicly accused America of supporting terrorists by backing Kurdish fighters.

The president expressed concern about destructive and false rhetoric coming from Turkey, and about United States citizens and local employees detained under the prolonged State of Emergency in Turkey, the White House said.

Longstanding frictions between the NATO allies over Washingtons backing of Syrian Kurdish fighters escalated on Sunday when Ankara, in defiance of the U.S., sent tanks and warplanes across the border into the Afrin region, to chase the Kurdish forces from a border enclave they control.

Its trigger was a plan by the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State to set up a new armed force in an area of northeast Syria near Turkeys border, controlled by Kurdish fighters who are working with American troops. Erdogan condemned a statement by one U.S. military official that a border security force was being established, and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson disowned that description.

The U.S. statement comes after Erdogan vowed to extend Turkeys offensive in northern Syria to another town, Manbij, where U.S. troops are embedded with local Kurdish fighters. When Erdogan sent his army into Afrin, Russian forces in that area pulled out, clearing the way for the Turkish advance. The White House statement suggests that U.S. soldiers may not do the same -- raising the prospect of a direct clash between the NATO armies, unless Erdogan backs down.

The Turkish presidency said Trump only touched upon the necessity of limiting the duration of the offensive keeping in mind the presence of a small number of U.S. troops in Manbij, the need to prevent a hot conflict in the area.

Syrian Kurds were the main ground force in the U.S. campaign to rout Islamic State, but Turkey regards them as an affiliate of a separatist group with designs on its territory. The dispute has pushed NATO member Turkey into alliance with Russia and Iran, as the three countries collaborate to impose a Syrian peace plan.

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