Chest surgery, General hospital in Istanbul, Turkey

"The Turks had a legitimate security concern... They have a terrorist threat to their south," Pompeo said in an interview on Wednesday with PBS NewsHour when he was asked if Syrian Kurdish fighters are the US allies."We've been working to make sure that we did what we could do to prevent that terror threat from striking the people in Turkey," he added.US President Donald Trump on the same day also downplayed Washington's partnership with the Syrian Kurdish militants, saying that his country had spent tremendous money on them and they were only fighting for their land in Syria, Xinhua news reported."They didn't help us in the Second World War," he said.The remarks of Trump and Pompeo indicated that the administration's abandoning of the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a crucial ally of the US-led coalition in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) terror group in Syria for years.Earlier on Wednesday, Turkey launched the military operations targeting the Kurdish forces in several parts of Syria after the US started pulling its troops out of there following a recent decision.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Wednesday declared the beginning of the military campaign to eliminate the Kurdish forces in Syria, which Ankara deems as terrorists and separatists.Turkey regards the SDF as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), against which it has been waging a year-long war on its own territory.The Trump administration's decision on Syria has prompted unremitting criticism among the US lawmakers from both parties, who fear a resurgence of the IS and a humanitarian crisis following the Turkish military offensive.Republican Senator Lindsey Graham and Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen on Wednesday announced a framework for sanctions against Turkey for its ongoing military campaign in Syria.The framework includes sanctions on senior Turkish government officials and prohibition of all the US military business and transactions with Turkey, among others.( With inputs from IANS )

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The United States will introduce sanctions against Turkey if it acts in a way that is disproportionate and inhumane, said a US State Department official. ...

More than 60,000 people have fled their homes on the Syrian border with Turkey in the last 36 hours amid Turkish offensive into Kurdish-held areas, an NGO has warned. ...

Turkish Presiden Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned the European Union (EU) that he would let millions of Syrian refugees cross into the bloc if it criticised the military operations as the Turkish offensive in Syria, launched by him aimed at pushing the Ku ...

India on Thursday expressed deep concerns about the unilateral military offensive by Turkey in north-east Syria, saying that Ankara's actions can undermine "stability in the region" and has the potential for causing humtarian and civilian distress. ...

At least 16 Kurdish fighters have been killed as Turkish ground forces assaulted towns in northeastern Syria. ...

The Turkish offensive in Syria, which was launched by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan aimed at pushing the Kurdish forces away from its border, entered its second day on Thursday. ...

US President Donald Trump has said that two Britons, who are accused of being part of an Islamic State (IS) terror group cell which kidnapped and murdered Western hostages, have been taken out of Syria to "a secure location controlled" by Washington, ...

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that Turkey has a legitimate security concern to launch the military offensive against Kurdish forces in Syria. ...