In a few weeks, they managed to break through the lines of the Islamic State (IS) and take over various localities, establishing a buffer zone between the Turkish border of the Syrian Arab Army and the Kurds, although the mission would not officially end until 29 March 2017, after seven months of offensives and counteroffensives.ĭuring that operation the first battle tanks to be deployed were the old M-60A3 Patton and, especially, M-60T Sabra, a Turkish variant of the Israeli-designed Sabra Mark III based on the previous one. Thus, Turkish units were deployed, preceded and combined with rebel forces of the Syrian Free Army (FSA), which could hardly be considered light infantry.
The possibility of the Kurds achieving a sort of state of their own in northern Syria was seen as a great threat in Ankara, which did not hesitate to use force. Turkish Leopard 2A4 in Syria: Operation Euphrates ShieldĪt the end of August 2016, after months of preparation, Turkey began the deployment of troops through northern Syria with the intention of preventing the unification of the Kurdish cantons in Syrian territory, whose peshmerga were expelling Daesh from large areas of the country.
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