Bomb blast kills 40 people in Syrian town of Afrin, Turkey says

ANKARA (ITNTV) - At least 40 civilians were killed, including 11 children, when a bomb detonated in the northern Syrian town of Afrin on Tuesday, the Turkish Defence Ministry said, blaming the attack on the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia.

In a statement on Twitter, the ministry said the blast occurred in a crowded area in Afrin’s centre. A video shared by the ministry showed black smoke billowing in the air while ambulance and police sirens wailed in the background.

The United States condemned the attack late on Tuesday, which State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said claimed “the lives of dozens of people shopping in the central market as they prepared to break the Ramadan fast.”

“Initial reports indicate many victims were civilians, including children,” she said in the statement, reiterating a U.S. call for a nationwide ceasefire in Syria. “Such cowardly acts of evil are unacceptable from any side in this conflict.”

Ankara views the YPG as a terrorist group linked to Kurdish militants on its own soil and has mounted military operations in northern Syria to push it back from the border.

Turkey’s military and its Syrian rebel allies seized Afrin, a mainly Kurdish district, from the YPG in March 2018 in a major offensive.

Tuesday’s blast was one of the deadliest to hit a region under the control of Turkish-backed forces. Ankara frequently blames the YPG for the attacks, while the militia says it does not target civilians.

Comments

Erdoğan says Turkey will overcome coronavirus in ‘two-three weeks’

Turkey will overcome the coronavirus outbreak in two to three weeks through good measures and with as little damage as possible, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on March 25. In a televised address to the nation, Erdoğan said Turkey was prepared for every scenario on the outbreak and urged Turkish nationals to show patience, understanding and support. “By breaking the speed of the virus’ spread in two to three weeks, we will get through this period as soon as possible and with as little damage as possible,” Erdoğan said. “Bright days await us, so long as we adhere by the warnings, remain cautious and careful,” he added. “Every citizen’s life is equally valuable to us. That is why we say, ‘Stay at Home, Turkey’.” Ankara has taken a series of measures to contain the virus, including limiting the use of public spaces, imposing a partial curfew on the elderly, as well as closing schools, cafes, and bars, banning mass prayers, and suspending sports...

US, UK coronavirus strategies shifted following UK epidemiologists' ominous report

(ITNTV) A study by UK epidemiologists predicts that attempts to slow, or mitigate -- rather than actively halt, or suppress -- the novel coronavirus could overwhelm the number of intensive care hospital beds and lead to about 250,000 deaths in the UK and more than a million in the United States during the course of the current pandemic. Sweeping restrictions take effect in coronavirus response as health officials warn US is at a tipping point The study, which has not been published in a peer-reviewed journal, was released on Monday by London's Imperial College COVID-19 Response Team, which says it is advising the UK government on its response strategy. The study says it used modeling that has informed the approach of the British government in recent weeks; on Monday, the government abruptly called on vulnerable and elderly Britons to isolate themselves for 12 weeks, and introduced a variety of social distancing and quarantine recommendations that days earlier ...

Tom Cruise on Top Gun sequel: Never thought I would make it

Tom Cruise, who will be seen reprising the role of Lt Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell in Tom Gun: Maverick, said that he never thought he will be making the sequel to his 1986 hit film. hollywood superstar Tom Cruise never thought a Top Gun sequel would ever happen. "Everywhere I went, people would be like, 'Do Top Gun', and I'm like, 'Guys, I don't know how to do it'," the actor said in an interview to Empire, on the much-anticipated sequel of 1986 hit Top Gun. "I don't know what the story is. I don't make movies just to make movies. I was like, 'Jerry (Bruckheimer, producer), it's never going to happen'. I honestly never thought I would make it," femalefirst.co.uk reports the Hollywood superstar as saying. Directed by Joseph Kosinski, the movie will be exclusively distributed in India by Viacom18 Studios. In the film, Tom will be seen reprising his role as pilot Pete 'Maverick' Mitchell. Watch the tr...

Infotainment News TV

Search This Blog