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Agence France-Presse

Pro-Ankara fighters taking part in a Turkish offensive on Kurdish-held border towns in northeastern Syria “executed” at least nine civilians on Saturday, a monitor said.
“The nine civilians were executed at different moments south of the town of Tal Abyad,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.
The Kurds said a female Kurdish party official and her driver were among those killed.
Hevrin Khalaf was “taken out of her car during a Turkish-backed attack and executed by Turkish-backed mercenary factions”, the political arm of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said in a statement.

“This is a clear evidence that the Turkish state is continuing its criminal policy towards unarmed civilians,” it added.
Turkey and its allied fighters began the offensive on Wednesday to push back the Kurdish Peoples’ Protection Units (YPG), the backbone of the SDF, from its border.
The allied fighters are Syrian former rebels who once fought against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
As the conflict morphed since erupting in 2011, these factions now receive training and funding from Ankara.
Kurdish activists circulated two videos on social media of the killings.
The first, posted on the Twitter account of the Ahrar al-Sharqiya rebel group, shows two people in civilian clothes kneeling on the ground as a fighter next to them announces they have been captured by the faction.
In the second, an unidentified fighter opens fire at a man on the ground wearing civilian attire.
Thousands in Europe march against Turkey’s Syria offensive
The Observatory confirmed the authenticity of the videos but AFP could not independently verify them.
The deaths brought to at least 38 the number of civilians killed on the Syrian side since start of the assault, according to the Observatory.
It says 81 Kurdish fighters have been killed in the clashes.
Ankara says the YPG is a “terrorist” group with links to Kurdish rebels in Turkey who have been waging an insurgency for three decades.


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Syrian conflict

Pro-Turkey rebels ‘execute’ nine civilians in Syria, monitor claims, amid international outcry over Erdogan’s offensive

A US forces outpost is seen on a hilltop, top left, outside Ayn Al Arab or Kobani, Syria. Photo: AP Photo

Turkey-backed Syrian rebel fighters sit together near the border town of Tel Abyad, Syria, October 12, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi

Tens of thousands march in European cities to protest against Turkey’s continuing Syria offensive

People hold pro-Kurd flags and banner in Paris on October 12. Photo: AFP

People hold pro-Kurd flags and banner in Paris on October 12, 2019 during a demonstration to support Kurdish militants and protest as Turkey kept up its assault on Kurdish-held border towns in northeastern Syria, on the fourth day of an offensive that is drawing growing international condemnation, even from Washington. (Photo by Martin BUREAU / AFP)

French member of Parliament and candidate for Paris' mayoral election, mathematician Cedric Villani, takes part on October 12, 2019 in Paris in a demonstration to support Kurdish militants and protest as Turkey kept up its assault on Kurdish-held border towns in northeastern Syria, on the fourth day of an offensive that is drawing growing international condemnation, even from Washington. (Photo by Martin BUREAU / AFP)

Turkey vows to press on with Syria assault despite US threat of ‘very powerful’ sanctions

Smoke rises from the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain as seen from the Turkish side of the border. Photo: AFP

epaselect epa07913802 US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin participates in a news conference in the James Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 11 October 2019. Mnuchin announced that US President Donald J. Trump is signing an executive order creating a mechanism for yet-to-be enacted 'powerful sanctions' against Turkey in response to the Turkish incursion into Syria. EPA-EFE/MICHAEL REYNOLDS

People gather after a car bomb exploded in the town of Qamishli, Syria, Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. Turkish forces faced intense resistance by U.S.-allied Syrian Kurdish fighters on the third day of Ankara's offensive, as casualties mounted, international criticism of the campaign intensified and an estimated 100,000 people fled the violence. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)

A member of the special forces of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is seen during preparations to join the front against Turkish forces, on October 10, 2019, near the northern Syrian town of Hasakeh. - Battles raged on October 11 as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to press on with an assault against Kurdish forces in Syria, dismissing "threats" from other countries while the US warned Ankara of fresh sanctions. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)

Members of the special forces of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are pictured during preparations to join the front against Turkish forces, on October 10, 2019, near the northern Syrian town of Hasakeh. - Battles raged on October 11 as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to press on with an assault against Kurdish forces in Syria, dismissing "threats" from other countries while the US warned Ankara of fresh sanctions. (Photo by Delil SOULEIMAN / AFP)

Smoke rises from the Syrian town of Ras al-Ain, in a picture taken from the Turkish side of the border in Ceylanpinar on October 11, 2019, on the third day of Turkey's military operation against Kurdish forces. - Turkey will not stop its operation against Kurdish militants in northern Syria, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday, dismissing what he called "threats" from other countries. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP)

A Turkish soldier gestures from a tank in the border town of Akcakale in Turkey’s Sanliurfa province on Friday. Photo: Reuters

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The Kurds said a female Kurdish party official and her driver were among those killed



The Kurds said a female Kurdish party official and her driver were among those killed.


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Pro-Turkey rebels ‘execute’ nine civilians in Syria, monitor claims, amid international outcry over Erdogan’s offensive

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} The Kurds said a female Kurdish party official and her driver were among those killed

The Kurds said a female Kurdish party official and her driver were among those killed