The Turkish military dug a 230-kilometer (143-mile) trench along the critical M4 highway traveling through Syria's Ras al-Ain and Tal Abyad regions in the face of growing terrorist attacks and infiltration attempts by the PKK’s Syrian offshoot, the YPG.
Turkish soldiers and Syrian National Army (SNA) forces keep guard duty along the ditches, Hürriyet daily reported Tuesday.
The ditch is 4 meters (13 feet) deep and 4 meters wide and has been dug to prevent YPG/PKK terrorists from crossing into the region, thus ensuring stability in the area north of the M4 highway.
The giant ditch also allows Turkey to ensure border security 35 kilometers deep into Syria, preventing YPG/PKK terrorists from launching attacks.
The Turkish military has also set up five different control points following frequent car bomb attacks by the YPG in Ras al-Ain and Tal Abyad.
Tal Abyad is populated mostly by Arabs and was occupied by the Daesh terrorist group in 2014. A year later, the YPG took control of the town with the support of the United States-led coalition. Tal Abyad was later cleared of terrorists via Operation Peace Spring on Oct. 13, 2019.
Last month, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Turkey was determined to eliminate threats originating in northern Syria, adding that the YPG killing two Turkish police officers in a terrorist attack was "the final straw."
Two Turkish police officers were killed and two others were wounded after the YPG carried out an attack in Azaz, northern Syria, according to the Interior Ministry. The YPG/PKK terrorists attacked an armored vehicle with a guided missile in the Operation Euphrates Shield area, the ministry said.
Separately, ammunition shells fired across the border from Syria's Jarablus caused explosions at two separate locations in southern Gaziantep province's Karkamış district, the governor's office said. A third shell landed within Jarablus, it said, adding that it was believed to have been launched from a region controlled by the YPG.
Turkey has aimed to prevent the YPG from establishing a de facto autonomous region in northern Syria, which would border Turkey and connect the so-called northwestern Afrin "canton" to the so-called Kobani (Ain al-Arab) and Jazeera "cantons" in the northeast. Ankara describes this as a "terror corridor" posing a grave security threat to its national security, underlining its possible impact on the PKK’s activity within Turkish borders.
Locals living in areas held by the YPG have long suffered from its atrocities, as the terrorist organization has a notorious record of human rights abuses, ranging from kidnappings, recruitment of child soldiers, torture, ethnic cleansing and forced displacement.
The terrorist group increased its oppression ahead of Turkey's cross-border operation, planting explosives and converting many schools and other public buildings into military bases, with some even hosting tunnels for terrorists to hide in and escape.
After liberating the town from the YPG last year, Turkey rolled up its sleeves to launch a normalization period in Tal Abyad, which borders the Akçakale district of southeastern Turkey’s Şanlıurfa.
Ras al-Ain was similarly liberated during the operation. However, the YPG/PKK terrorists continue attacks in Ras al-Ain and the nearby city of Tal Abyad despite pulling out of areas under a deal reached by Turkey and the U.S. on Oct. 17, 2019.
In September, the Turkish military deployed more troops on the M4 highway.
Turkish soldiers are currently stationed in the region to protect the local population and support counterterrorism groups. Despite the military escalation, Ankara has also been keeping diplomatic channels active with Russia in the hope of finding a political solution, urging the country to uphold the peace agreements and ensure an immediate cease-fire.