Turkish army, Syrian allies enter Tal Abyad, situation calm: Reuters witness

The Turkish army and its Syrian opposition allies advanced into the center of the Syrian town of Tal Abyad on Sunday where the situation was calm and they were conducting search operations, a Reuters witness said.

Tal Abyad is a town at the Syrian-Turkish border and one of the main focal points of the Turkish offensive that began on Wednesday against the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday that Turkey’s military and its Syrian opposition allies will advance 30-35 km into Syrian territory in their offensive against Kurdish-led forces and they have already seized control of the town of Ras al-Ain.

Speaking at a news conference in Istanbul, Erdogan said the Turkish-led forces had also besieged the Syrian border town of Tal Abyad. He said two Turkish soldiers and 16 Turkey-backed Syrian fighters had been killed in the operation.