Biden administration officials are reportedly scrambling to address a Turkish-backed offensive in Syria targeting the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US partner force designated as a terrorist group by Ankara that is militarily led by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and its all-female arm, the YPJ.

Since the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad regime on December 8, the SDF has been targeted by the Syrian National Army (SNA, formerly the Free Syrian Army FSA/OSO), a militia that includes jihadist groups, established in 2017 under the auspices of Turkey.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is due to visit Ankara on December 13. One concern high on his agenda will be ensuring Syria does not become a base for international terrorism, another—according to a Turkish official cited by Middle East Eye (MEE) on December 11—will probably be ensuring that the SNA does not progress towards Kobani (or Ayn al Arab, as it is known in Arabic), a Kurdish-majority city in northern Syria by the Turkish border under YPG control.

SNA attacks on the SDF—which served as the main fighting force turned to by the US in bringing down the self-declared Islamic State caliphate that a decade ago was formed in parts of Syria and Iraq—have resulted in the SNA I the past few days seizing areas including Tal Rifaat and Manbij, which were under SDF control.

Tal Rifaat and Manbij are west of the Euphrates river. They do not enjoy US air cover, unlike Kurdish-controlled areas east of the river. 
Following the capture of Manbij, the SNA took control of Karakozak bridge and crossed the Euphrates River to the east bank and seized the Tomb of Suleyman Shah, a site of historical and cultural importance linked to the Ottoman Empire. The concern now is that the SNA might push on towards heavily populated Kobani, part of the self-declared Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES), also known as Rojava. 

(Credit: AntonSamuel, cc-by-sa 4.0). 

Turkey regards the SDF as an affiliate of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which for 40 years has waged an insurgency concentrated in the southeast of Turkey.

“Turkey will maintain military pressure because some officials in the US are facilitating talks between the SDF and Israel in a last-minute attempt to secure the group's future,” a person familiar with the issue told MEE.

Israeli public broadcaster Kann last week reported that initial official talks between Tel Aviv and the SDF leadership occurred earlier this month. Since then, senior Israeli officials have started adopting rhetoric supportive of the Syrian Kurdish group.

“The attacks on the Kurds, as we saw yesterday in Manbij, must stop. There must be a commitment and actions by the international community to protect the Kurds, who fought bravely against ISIS [Islamic State]. We have spoken with the US administration and other countries on this matter,” Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar told reporters on December 9.

US Central Command (Centcom) Commander General Michael Kurilla visited northeastern Syria on December 10. He underlined US backing for the SDF as an anti-Islamic State allied force.

US tabloid New York Post on December 10, under the headline “Washington better rein in slimy Turkish President Erdogan – before Americans get hurt”, wrote: “Washington needs to do something about Turkish strongman Recep Tayyip Erdogan. And if Team Biden won’t, then the incoming Trump folks must.

“No sooner had the Assad regime collapsed than the Turkish military attacked the northern Syrian town of Manbij, which has been under the control of US-backed Kurdish forces.”

Stressing that the Kurdish forces “are US allies, helping to keep ISIS and other terrorists from resurging”, the newspaper added: “About 900 US troops work with them to control the area; fortunately no Americans were hurt, this time. Yet Turkey put all of them in harm’s way — even though it’s technically a US ally itself, as a member of NATO.

“True, as Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin noted, Erdogan has longstanding ‘security concerns’ about extremist Kurdish separatists, who want their own nation. But Erdogan is clearly aiming to capitalize on the power vacuum created by Bashar al-Assad’s fall and extend his influence.”

Screenshot of July 2021 CNN news report on charging of Trump ally Tom Barrack for unlawfully acting as a foreign agent of the UAE. Barrack, who this week has been nominated as the next US ambassador to Turkey, was later acquitted.

Separately, US President-elect Donald Trump on December 10 picked Tom Barrack, who served as chair of his 2016 inaugural committee, as Washington DC’s next ambassador to Turkey.

Barrack, a private equity executive, is a longtime friend of the Republican president-elect, who takes office on January 20.

In 2022, Barrack was acquitted of nine counts after being charged with unlawfully acting as an agent of the United Arab Emirates in trying to influence the Trump campaign and administration. Charges included failing to register as a foreign agent, obstructing justice and lying to federal agents. Trump described Barrack as a “well-respected and experienced voice of reason to a wide range of thought leaders in both political and business circles” in his post announcing the appointment.

Barrack is the founder of Colony Capital LLC.