DAMASCUS, June 22 (Xinhua) -- The Turkish army has deployed reinforcements into northern Syria as part of preparations to unleash a military offensive against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a monitor group reported on Thursday.
The Turkish troops reached the southern side of the Syrian city of Azaz, as part of the ongoing preparations by the Turkish-backed rebels and Turkish forces to mount a wide-scale military offensive against the SDF in the Afreen area in the northern side of Aleppo, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The London-based watchdog group added that tension is brewing in Afreen in anticipation of the imminent showdown.
It noted that the military convoy started entering the area between the cities of Azaz and Mare' on Wednesday.
The group also reported that preparations are being made by Turkish-backed rebels in both the western and northern sides of Aleppo to launch simultaneous attacks on the SDF positions.
Turkey is very concerned about the advance of the Kurdish-led groups in northern Syrian areas close to the Turkish border.
Ankara has pledged not to allow the Kurds to have their own autonomy in Syria, out of fears that such separatist movement could inspire the Kurds in Turkey to follow suit.
The aim of Turkey's recent military buildup is to reduce the presence of the Kurdish-led groups near the Syrian-Turkish border, activists said.
Still, fighting with on SDF and other Kurdish groups is not easy, as the Kurds and the SDF are supported by the U.S.-led anti-terror coalition, and the Turkish military operations could strain Ankara's ties with the U.S., a NATO ally.
Washington has strongly supported the SDF in their recent push to capture the Syrian city of Raqqa, the de facto capital of the terror group Islamic State (IS).
The SDF claimed it had made big achievements in Raqqa, capturing areas in the west and eastern parts of the city amid reports that it had laid a full siege on the city.
Tensions have also risen between Syrian troops and the SDF, following the Syrian advance in the western side of Raqqa.
Even though both are fighting against IS, the SDF, backed by the U.S., doesn't want to see any progress of the Syrian army in Raqqa.
The Syrian government has for long blamed Turkey for the bloodshed in Syria, citing that most foreign jihadists have infiltrated the country through the Turkish-Syrian border.
