Turkish President Erdogan warned that the Kurdish militia in Syria will be destroyed if they do not surrender their weapons

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan stated on Wednesday that Kurdish militants in Syria must either surrender their arms or face severe consequences, as tensions escalate between Turkey-backed Syrian forces and the militants following the recent ousting of Bashar al-Assad.

In light of Assad’s exit, Ankara has consistently demanded the disbandment of the Kurdish YPG militia, claiming that it has no role in Syria’s future. The shift in leadership has put the primary Kurdish factions in a vulnerable position.

“The separatist terrorists will either relinquish their weapons or be buried in Syrian soil alongside them,” Erdogan declared to members of his ruling AK Party during a parliamentary session. He further emphasized, “We will eliminate the terrorist organization that seeks to create a divide filled with blood between us and our Kurdish brothers.”

Turkey considers the Kurdish YPG militia, a key part of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), to be an offshoot of the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been engaged in an insurgency against the Turkish government since 1984.

The PKK is classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union. Ankara has repeatedly urged its NATO ally, Washington, and other nations to cease their support for the YPG.

Earlier, Turkey’s defense ministry reported that its armed forces had eliminated 21 YPG-PKK militants in northern Syria and Iraq. In a recent interview with Reuters, SDF commander Mazloum Abdi acknowledged the presence of PKK fighters in Syria for the first time, stating that they had assisted in the fight against the Islamic State and would return home if a comprehensive ceasefire with Turkey were established, which is a fundamental demand from Ankara.

He refuted any connections with the PKK. Erdogan also announced that Turkey would be reopening its consulate in Aleppo and expressed anticipation of increased border traffic in the summer of the following year, as a portion of the millions of Syrian migrants currently in Turkey are expected to start returning.