ISTANBUL/BEIRUT: Turkish and US soldiers began patrols in northern Syria on Monday along the line between the town of Manbij and a neighbouring region under Turkey’s control, as part of a deal reached by the two countries, the Turkish military said.

In a statement released on its Twitter account, the military said the patrols were being conducted independent of each other along the line between Manbij and the area of which Turkey seized control in its “Euphrates Shield” operation.

Several pro-regime fighters killed

An air strike has killed nearly 40 pro-regime foreign fighters in eastern Syria, with a US-led coalition denying accusations from Damascus that it was behind the attack.

The strike just before midnight hit Al-Hari, a town controlled by regional militias fighting in the complex seven-year war on behalf of President Bashar al-Assad.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor of the conflict, said it was one of the deadliest air attacks on government loyalists in recent months.

“Thirty-eight non-Syrian fighters from regime loyalist militias were killed in the night-time raid on Al-Hari, on the Syrian-Iraqi border,” said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.

He could not give any further details on their nationalities, but there are Iraqi, Iranian, Lebanese and even Afghan fighters stationed in the area. Syrian state media reported the attack overnight, citing a military source and accusing the US-led coalition fighting the militant Islamic State group of carrying it out.

Published in Dawn, June 19th, 2018