Turkey’s president has warned of imminent military offensives on two Kurdish-held areas in northern Syria, as tanks and troops gather on the border. Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Syrian rebels would support Turkish efforts to clear the “terror nests” of Afrin and Manbij. The areas are controlled by the YPG, which Ankara considers a terrorist group but the US views as an ally.
Meanwhile, Kurdish members of the Iraqi parliament will abstain from voting on the budget bill that they allege violates the constitution as Baghdad votes on it today. Without a national consensus on the bill, the Iraqi governments own spending will be limited to one twelfth of the budget. Kurdish parties are hoping it will pressure Baghdad into amending the bill and restoring it’s 17% budget share.
Lastly, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West have welcomed their third child, a baby girl, on Tuesday. The couple used a surrogate for the pregnancy, for which they kept a low profile in the media, and have not revealed the name of the new baby.
