Turkey Airstrikes on Kurds in Syria, Iraq Spark US Concern

The US expressed “deep concern” at Turkish airstrikes that killed about two dozen Kurdish fighters in Syria and Iraq. US state department spokesman Mark Toner said: “We are very concerned, deeply concerned that Turkey conducted airstrikes earlier today in northern Syria as well as northern Iraq without proper co-ordination either with the United States or the broader global coalition to defeat IS.” US media reported that Monitors from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, in a statement late Tuesday, said at least 18 people had been killed in the strikes and warned the death toll was likely to rise. Meanwhile Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan defended the airstrikes, telling Reuters: “We are obliged to take measures. We must take steps.”