BEIRUT, Lebanon: At least 26 combattants were killed Sunday as Turkish-backed Syrian fighters launched an offensive on the northern Manbij area, days after seizing a Kurdish-held enclave.
The pro-Turkiye fighters had already retaken the Kurdish-held Tal Rifaat enclave last week, days after  rebels swooped into government-held areas, snatching key cities before reaching Damascus on Sunday.
“Pro-Turkish factions... seized large districts of Manbij city in the eastern Aleppo countryside, after violent clashes with the Manbij Military Council,” the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said.
The Council is affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that act as a de facto army for the Kurdish administration that controls swathes of Syria’s northeast.
“The clashes killed nine pro-Turkish fighters and at least 17 Manbij Military Council” combattants, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources inside Syria.
The US-backed SDF also reported “fierce clashes,” saying the military councils in Manbij and in Al-Bab were “dealing qualitative blows” to Turkish-backed fighters.
The Ankara-backed factions said they had “taken control of the city of Manbij in the eastern countryside of Aleppo after fierce battles,” in a statement on their Telegram channel.
The groups posted videos of the fighters declaring control over Manbij, said to be from inside the area.
AFP could not independently verify the videos.
Earlier Sunday, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi hailed “historic” moments with the fall of the “authoritarian regime” of President Bashar Assad.