Hundreds of thousands of civilians in Syria wait for PYD/PKK terror to end

Around 250,000 civilians in Syria -- who fled their homes due to terrorism -- are awaiting for the PYD/PKK threat to come to an end so they could return to their homes, a council head in Tel Rifat told Anadolu Agency in an interview.

Talking about the recent situation in Afrin, district of Syria's Aleppo province, Mahmoud Allito said the PYD/PKK terror forced around 250,000 civilians to leave the city by the same name.

"When PKK's existence ends in Tel Rifat, those who fled their homes can return to their homes and continue with their normal lives," Allito said.

"Families right now cannot return to their homes because of the PKK. The organization hates everyone."

He also spoke about the terrorist organization's seizure of lands and properties of local people.

A total of 60 residential areas had to be deserted due to the PYD/PKK terror, including in places like Tel Karah, Eneb, az-Ziyyarah, Kefer Nasih, Ehras and Sheikh Isa.

On Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Turkey will "destroy" all terror nests in Syria, one by one, starting with Afrin and Manbij regions.

There are currently 8,000 to 10,000 terrorists in Afrin region in Aleppo, near the Turkish-Syrian border, which has been besieged by the PYD/PKK terrorists.

Terrorists are now hiding in shelters and pits in residential areas in Afrin -- a region bordering Turkey's Hatay and Kilis provinces -- after Turkey pointed out that the region was a nest for terrorists.

The eastern part of Afrin comprises of two districts: Tel Rifat -- which is occupied by the PYD/PKK terrorist organization, and Azez -- controlled by opposition forces, which also controls Idlib province.

The Afrin operation will follow Turkey's successful seven-month long Operation Euphrates Shield, which ended in March 2017.

The coalition had issued a written statement to some media outlets earlier on Sunday, wherein it said it was working with the SDF/PKK to set up and train a Syrian border protection force.

Turkey has long protested the U.S. support for the PYD/PKK, the Syrian offshoot of the PKK terrorist organization, and its military wing YPG/PKK, which Washington sees as a "reliable ally" in its fight against Daesh in Syria.

Listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU, the PKK has waged a terror campaign against Turkey for more than 30 years.

Since the mid-1980s, the PKK has waged a wide-ranging terror campaign against the Turkish state in which an estimated 40,000 people have been killed.