Assad says Syria will act to counter Turkey invasion by 'all legitimate means'

Since Turkey's invasion of northeast Syria started on October 9, dozens of civilians have been killed and 300,000 have been displaced, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Bashar al-Assad

President Bashar al-Assad on Thursday vowed that Syria would act to counter the Turkish invasion into northern Syria by "all legitimate means."

Turkey on October 9 launched a deadly cross-border offensive targeting Kurdish militants along the Turkey-Syria border.

In a desperate move to protect themselves from Ankara's assault following the United State's abrupt pullback of forces from the area, Kurdish militants earlier this week struck a deal with President Bashar al-Assad's formerly enemy forces.

Russian forces, allied to Assad, have also stepped in, patrolling areas to prevent clashes between Turkish-backed forces and the regime.

Syrian regime troops and Russian soldiers on Wednesday entered the key border town of Kobane, a highly symbolic town for Syria's Kurds, whose forces had in 2015 wrested the town from Islamic State (IS) group control in an epic battle backed by the US-led coalition.

The deployment is the most significant by the Syrian army since it began a large-scale pullout from the region in 2012.
Since Turkey's invasion of northeast Syria started on October 9, dozens of civilians have been killed and 300,000 have been displaced, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

With additional reporting from i24news