The reports specified that the contingent of troops were previously stationed in northwestern parts of the Raqqa Governorate, not the provincial capital, and are now positioned in the border city of Ras al-Ayn in al-Hasakah province.
Soldiers from the French Army entered the city of Manbij – which has been identified as a future target for Turkey’s cross-border military operation in Syria – and the border town of Tell Abyad, on April 3, after US troops withdrew to other SDF-controlled parts of the country.
READ MORE: French Soldiers Enter Parts of Northern Syria as US Troops Withdraw — Reports
The rotation of US forces with French troops offers a likely explanation to US President Donald Trump’s comments about leaving Syria “to let others take care of it,” though this is yet to be confirmed by anyone in his administration.
The Syrian government has repeatedly condemned Turkey’s offensive on its soil as a breach of its sovereignty.
Turkey considers the SDF to have ties to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) – which has long been designated a terror organization by the EU, the US, and Turkey – and believes the group’s presence near its southern border poses a national security threat.
