The military leader of Syrian Kurds reportedly told a senior U.S. diplomat that America is “leaving us to be slaughtered” amid Turkey’s bombing attacks and the controversial retreat of U.S. troops from Syria.
”You have given up on us,” Gen. Mazioum Kobani Abdi, commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, told the deputy special envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, William Roebuck, on Thursday, CNN reported Saturday, citing an internal readout of the meeting.
“You are leaving us to be slaughtered.”
"You are not willing to protect the people, but you do not want another force to come and protect us. You have sold us. This is immoral," he added.
The general demanded the United States either help stop the Turkish offensive, or let the SDF strike a deal with the Assad regime and their Russian backers to allow Russian warplanes enforce a no-fly zone over northeast Syria — something Washington wouldn’t want, CNN reported.
"I need to know if you are capable of protecting my people, of stopping these bombs falling on us or not,” the general insisted, CNN reported. “I need to know, because if you're not, I need to make a deal with Russia and the regime now and invite their planes to protect this region.”
Washington hasn’t taken any action yet to stop the Turkish bombing drive, aside from giving the Treasury Department new sanction authorities against Turkey.
Roebuck urged Mazloum "not to take any immediate decisions," saying he would communicate the Kurdish leaders' messages to the State Department, and saying the United States was working to stop Turkey's offensive and broker a ceasefire, CNN reported.
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