Operation Euphrates Shield (Turkish: Fırat Kalkanı Harekâtı) was a cross-border military operation conducted by the Turkish Armed Forces in the Syrian Civil War which led to the Turkish occupation of northern Syria. Operations were carried out in the region between the Euphrates river to the east and the rebel-held area around Azaz to the west. The Turkish military and Turkey-aligned Syrian rebel groups, some of which used the Free Syrian Army label, fought against the forces of the Islamic State (IS) as well as against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) from 24 August 2016. On 29 March 2017, the Turkish military officially announced that Operation Euphrates Shield was "successfully completed".[1]
Quick Facts Date, Location ...
Operation Euphrates Shield |
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Part of the Turkey–IS conflict, the Rojava conflict, the military intervention against IS, and Turkish involvement in the Syrian civil war |
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/23/Operation_Euphrates_Shield.svg/300px-Operation_Euphrates_Shield.svg.png)
Turkish-backed opposition control SDF control Syrian Army control Islamic State control For a more detailed, up-to-date, interactive map, see here. |
Date | 24 August 2016 – 29 March 2017 (7 months and 5 days)[1] |
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Location | |
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Action | Turkey and allies secure control of Syria–Turkey border and region between Afrin and Manbij regions. |
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Result |
Turkish and SNA victory[2]
- Clashes erupt between Turkish-backed Syrian rebels and SDF, YPG withdraws to east of Euphrates[3] though Turkey disputes this[4]
- 50,000 Syrian refugees in Turkey have returned to the areas which were taken under control since the beginning of the intervention.[5]
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Territorial changes |
- Turkish-backed Syrian rebels captured a total of 2,055 square kilometres (793 sq mi),[6] including 230 settlements,[7] increasing FSA-controlled territory in the region to 2,225 square kilometres (859 sq mi)[8]
- Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant-held territory along the Turkish–Syrian border completely captured by the Turkish-backed rebels[9]
- Turkish-backed rebels capture all settlements in the Jarabulus area from the SDF[10]
- Turkish-backed rebels capture al-Bab from ISIL.[11]
- The SDF is prevented from connecting the cantons.[12]
- The SDF hand over some territory to the Syrian Army.[13][14]
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Belligerents |
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Turkey
Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army[15] Support:
United States[a][16][17][18]
Russia[a][19][20][21][22]
United Kingdom[a][23] |
Islamic State |
Syrian Democratic Forces[24]
International Freedom Battalion[25]
Support:
United States[a][26]
Syria (minor clashes) Support:
Russia |
Commanders and leaders |
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Lt. Gen. Zekai Aksakallı[27] (Operations chief commander)
Lt. Gen. İsmail Metin Temel[28][29] (Second Army commander)
![Syrian opposition](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg.png) Col. Ahmed Othman[30] (Sultan Murad Division commander)
![Syrian opposition](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg.png) Fehim İsa[31] (Sultan Murad Division commander)
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Brig. Gen. Sayf Balud[32] (Hazma Division)
Mahir Basha[33] (Muntasar Billah Brigade commander)
Mustafa Cahit[33] (Muntasar Billah Brigade commander)
Mohammad Abu Ibrahim[34] (Levant Front field commander)
![Syrian opposition](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg.png) Mustafa Sejari[34] (Al-Moutasem Brigade political leader)
Abu Mohammed Kafr Zita[26] (Liberation Brigade commander)
Mahmoud Abu Hamza[35] (Descendants of Saladin Brigade commander)
Capt. Abdul Salam Abdul Razaq[35] Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement commander, until 28 January)
Capt. Mohammed Abu Mustafa[36] (Sham Legion commander)
Abu Jafer[37] (Brigade of Conquest commander) (Artillery base commander of Levant Front)
Yusuf Sibli (Qabasin Military Council commander)[citation needed]
Brig. Gen. Abdul Razaq Aslan[38] (Police force head)
Taha Atrach[citation needed] (1st Aleppo Division commander)
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![Syrian opposition](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg.png) Ali Şeyh Salih[39] (DOW)[40] (Sultan Murad Division field commander)
![Syrian opposition](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/14/Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg/23px-Flag_of_the_Syrian_revolution.svg.png) Muhammad al-Gabi (DOW)[41][36] (Liberation Army commander)
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Abu Ansari[42] † (Emir of al-Bab)
Abu Hussein al-Tunusi[43] † (ISIL southern Raqqa field commander)
Abu Khalid Urduni[44] † (Amir of al-Bab)
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Muhammad Ahmed[45] (Jarabulus Military Council commander)
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/61/Flag_of_Syrian_Democratic_Forces.svg/23px-Flag_of_Syrian_Democratic_Forces.svg.png) Adnan Abu Amjad[46] (Manbij Military Council commander) |
Units involved |
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Orders of battle |
Strength |
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4,000–8,000 troops[47][48][49]
: 10,000–12,000 fighters[52][50][53][54] |
5,000–7,000+ militants[49][55][56][57] |
Unknown |
Casualties and losses |
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71 killed[58]
614 killed[59][60] |
2,647 killed, 417 captured (per Turkey)[61] |
131+ killed (per SOHR and SDF)[62]
425 killed, 37 captured (per Turkey)[61]
30+ killed, 22 captured[63][64][65] |
540+ civilians killed (per SOHR)[66][67] |
Close
The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said on the first day of the operation that it was aimed against both the IS and Syrian Kurdish "terror groups that threaten our country in northern Syria".[68] The objective to capture Manbij, under the de facto control of the AANES administration, that had been promulgated by the Turkish president at the end of February 2017[69] remained unfulfilled.