YPG/PKK begins withdrawing from northern Syria - CENTCOM

Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a label used by the YPG/PKK terrorist group, have begun withdrawing from northeast Syria after demolishing military installations, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) said on Friday.

The move comes after the defence chiefs of Turkey and the US agreed to launch the first phase of a safe zone plan in northern Syria on Wednesday.

In a phone call on Wednesday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar and US Defence Secretary Mark Esper agreed to launch the first phase of the Syria safe zone plan.

Akar said a safe zone east of the Euphrates River in Syria should be established within the framework of the principles set out in the calendar without delay.

Akar and Esper also agreed that military delegations from the two countries will meet in Ankara soon to discuss the next stages of the safe zone plan.

Turkish and US military officials reached an agreement on August 7 that the safe zone in northern Syria will serve as a "peace corridor" for displaced Syrians longing to return home and a Joint Operations Center in Turkey will be set up to coordinate its establishment.

The US, which considers the PKK a terrorist organisation, changed the YPG’s name to the Syrian Democratic Forces in July 2017 in order to dissociate it with the PKK.

In the last two years, Turkey’s Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch operations liberated the region from YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists, allowing hundreds of thousands of displaced civilians to return to their homes

The PKK, which is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the European Union, has waged a terror campaign against Turkey for more than 30 years, resulting in the deaths of nearly 40,000 people.