People protest against Assad regime, YPG/PKK terror group in northern Syria

People on Sunday staged a protest against the YPG/PKK terror group and the Bashar al-Assad regime in the Azaz district in northern Syria, demanding their lands be cleared of terrorists.

Having been forcibly displaced from their lands by the YPG/PKK terror group in northern Syria, the people of Tal Rifat gathered in the district center of Azaz and asked the Turkish Armed Forces and Syrian National Army to clear their lands of the YPG/PKK terrorists.

Noting that the Assad regime and Iran-backed terror groups are hiding the terrorist group in and around Tal Rifat, the demonstrators demanded that those groups be expelled from Syria.

Chanting slogans against the YPG/PKK, Assad regime, and Iran, the demonstrators carried placards that read: "Tal Rifat, occupied villages, separation gone long enough", "It's high time for the displaced people to return to their homes", "Syria is free. Iran and YPG/PKK should exit!", "We want our lands to be cleared of terrorism."

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Yusuf Kebso, who has been living away from his land for six years, said: "We came together today to protest against the terrorist organization YPG/PKK and its supporters. We want the Turkish Armed Forces and Syrian National Army to clear our lands of terrorism."

Noting that the terror group forced them out of their homeland, he said: "The YPG/PKK has condemned us to makeshift tents. We have been living in tents for the last six years, away from our homes and workplaces."

Over the past years, the terrorist group managed to dig a network of tunnels in Tal Rifat and surrounding villages.

The YPG/PKK terrorists occupied the area in February 2016 and forced tens of thousands of residents to leave their homes.

The YPG/PKK terror group uses Tal Rifat and surrounding villages to launch attacks in areas cleared by Turkey.

On Wednesday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said his country is set to clear two areas of northern Syria, near the Turkish border, of terrorist elements in a bid to eliminate the terror threat from the region.

"We are entering a new phase of our decision to establish a safe zone 30 kilometers (18.6 miles) deep south (of the Turkish-Syrian border). We are clearing Tal Rifat and Manbij of terrorists," Erdoğan told a group meeting of his Justice and Development (AK) Party in the capital Ankara.