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| Turkey to suspend Syria offensive 'to allow Kurdish withdrawal' | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Turkey has agreed to a ceasefire in northern Syria to let Kurdish-led forces withdraw. | |
| The development followed talks in Ankara between US Vice-President Mike Pence and Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. | |
| All fighting will be paused for five days, and the US will help facilitate an "orderly withdrawal" of Kurdish-led troops from what Turkey terms a "safe zone" on the border, Mr Pence said. | |
| Turkey launched its assault last week. | Turkey launched its assault last week. |
| Its goal was to push back from its border a Kurdish militia group - the People's Protection Units (YPG) - that it views as a terrorist organisation. | |
| Turkey had hoped to resettle up to two million Syrian refugees in the area, but critics warned that could trigger ethnic cleansing of the local Kurdish population. | |
| The cross-border offensive came after US President Donald Trump announced he was pulling US forces out of the border region - a decision condemned by US politicians across party lines. | |
| The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fought alongside the US against the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria, and the US withdrawal has been condemned as the abandonment of an ally. | |
| How has Trump reacted? | How has Trump reacted? |
| President Trump tweeted about the Turkish ceasefire before Mr Pence unveiled it, writing: "Millions of lives will be saved!" | President Trump tweeted about the Turkish ceasefire before Mr Pence unveiled it, writing: "Millions of lives will be saved!" |
| He added later: "This deal could NEVER have been made 3 days ago. There needed to be some "tough" love in order to get it done. Great for everybody. Proud of all!" | He added later: "This deal could NEVER have been made 3 days ago. There needed to be some "tough" love in order to get it done. Great for everybody. Proud of all!" |
| Mr Pence credited Donald Trump's "strong leadership" during the announcement, saying: "He wanted a ceasefire. He wanted to stop the violence." | Mr Pence credited Donald Trump's "strong leadership" during the announcement, saying: "He wanted a ceasefire. He wanted to stop the violence." |
| "I am proud of the United States for sticking by me in following a necessary, but somewhat unconventional, path," Mr Trump added on Twitter. | "I am proud of the United States for sticking by me in following a necessary, but somewhat unconventional, path," Mr Trump added on Twitter. |
| Just a day before the Pence-Erdogan meeting, it emerged that Mr Trump had sent his Turkish counterpart a letter about the offensive, urging him: "Don't be a tough guy. Don't be a fool!" | |
| Turkish sources said President Erdogan threw the letter in the bin. | |
| What does Turkey say? | What does Turkey say? |
| Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told journalists the offensive would only be permanently halted when the SDF had left the border zone. | Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told journalists the offensive would only be permanently halted when the SDF had left the border zone. |
| "We are suspending the operation, not halting it," he said. "We will halt the operation only after [Kurdish forces] completely withdraw from the region." | "We are suspending the operation, not halting it," he said. "We will halt the operation only after [Kurdish forces] completely withdraw from the region." |
| Mr Cavusoglu said Turkey had also secured its goal of having heavy arms removed from the Kurdish-led fighters, and their positions destroyed. | Mr Cavusoglu said Turkey had also secured its goal of having heavy arms removed from the Kurdish-led fighters, and their positions destroyed. |
| Mr Pence said the US would lift economic sanctions imposed on Turkey when the military offensive ended, and would not impose more in the meantime. | Mr Pence said the US would lift economic sanctions imposed on Turkey when the military offensive ended, and would not impose more in the meantime. |
| The SDF was not represented at the talks between Washington and Ankara, and have not yet commented on the developments. | The SDF was not represented at the talks between Washington and Ankara, and have not yet commented on the developments. |
| Mr Pence said the US had contacted the Kurdish-led alliance, and would help facilitate their withdrawal. | Mr Pence said the US had contacted the Kurdish-led alliance, and would help facilitate their withdrawal. |
| Speaking to Al Arabiya, senior Kurdish politician Aldar Xelil said he welcomed an end to the fighting, but that the SDF would defend itself if exposed to violence. | Speaking to Al Arabiya, senior Kurdish politician Aldar Xelil said he welcomed an end to the fighting, but that the SDF would defend itself if exposed to violence. |