Amid Ankara’s overtures to Damascus, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham the radical group controlling Idlib has seized Afrin and is seeking a deal to expand its control further into territories held by factions allied with Turkey.
Turkey’s handling of recent clashes between allied groups in Syria has called its intention into question, with some arguing that the jihadi outfit controlling Idlib has gained a foothold in Afrin by using a Turkish-linked group as a Trojan horse.
Turkey is seeking to downplay the jihadi threat that its troops face in Idlib, the last Islamist stronghold in Syria, opting to turn the spotlight to the Kurds instead.
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