Syria: 6 civilians dead, 25 hurt in Afrin terror attack

AFRIN, Syria

At least six civilians were killed in a bomb blast in northwestern Syria on Saturday, according to local sources.

Some 25 more people were wounded when a vehicle packed with explosives blew up at an industrial site in Afrin district, the sources said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet, but it was likely carried out by the YPG/PKK terror group.

Afrin was largely cleared of YPG/PKK terrorists in 2018 through Turkey’s anti-terror offensive Operation Olive Branch, but the terror group still has sleeper cells.

YPG/PKK terrorists continue to carry out attacks but do not claim responsibility when they end up harming civilians, according to local security sources.

The terror group, attacking from Syria’s adjacent Tal Rifaat and Manbij regions, often targets Jarabulus, Azaz, Afrin, and al-Bab.

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 the 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).