ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Two members of an all-woman force in the northern Syrian city of Manbij were killed by a Turkish drone strike on Friday, a Kurdish-led military council said. A Turkish drone hit a vehicle near Manbij, killing two members of the Women’s Protection Units (YPJ) and injuring two other people who were in the car, including one man, said the Manbij Military Council, which is affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). It was initially reported that three YPJ fighters were killed. Turkey has not immediately commented on the drone attack. The YPJ is the all-women wing of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) - the backbone of the SDF. Turkey and its Syrian mercenaries have stepped up their attacks against Kurdish-led forces in Syria. Kurds have accused Turkey of taking advantage of recent clashes between some Arab tribes and the SDF in the eastern province of Deir ez-Zor, using it as an opportunity to attack Kurdish-led forces in Manbij and other areas. Manbij is located at a key crossroad in northern Syria. Turkey considers the YPG to be the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Peoples’ Party (PKK) - an armed group struggling for increased rights of Kurds in Turkey but listed as a terrorist organization by Ankara. Turkey has carried out three military operations against the Kurdish forces in northern Syria since 2016, invading key towns near the border such as Afrin, Sari Kani (Ras al-Ain) and Gire Spi (Tal Abyad).
