A Turkish flag flies over the Karkamis border crossing, as a Daesh flag is seen at the customs office of Syria's Jarablus border gate in the background, in Karkamis, in Turkey's Gaziantep province earlier this week. — Reuters Nick Tattersall
KARKAMIS, Turkey — Packets of cigarettes and tea gathering dust in his one-room store, Mustafa Karatas doubts a joint US-Turkish plan to flush Daesh (the so-called IS) militants from the Syrian border will make much difference to his business any time soon. This main commercial street in Karkamis, a Turkish town of 10,500 people, sits directly opposite the border post. Shut for more than a year, the military sealed the crossing with a breeze block wall a few months ago. Behind it, just inside Syria, the black flag of Daesh flaps in the breeze. Karkamis lies on the northeastern edge of a rectangle of Syrian territory some 80 km long, controlled by the radicals. The United States and Turkey hope that by sweeping Daesh from this border zone, they can deprive it of a smuggling route which has seen its ranks swollen with foreign fighters and its coffers boosted by illicit trade. Moderate Syrian rebels, trained by the US army, will fight Daesh on the ground and help coordinate airstrikes by the US coalition, launched from Turkish air bases, under the strategy drawn up by Washington and Ankara. Diplomats familiar with the plans say cutting off one of Daesh lifelines could be a game-changer in this corner of Syria's complex war. The core of the rebels, who number less than 60, will be highly equipped and be able to call in close air support when needed, they say. But there are major challenges. Turkey is distrustful of the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which has proved a useful US ally in fighting Daesh. It controls adjacent territory on the eastern side of the Euphrates river, just across from Karkamis and the militant-held town of Jarablus. Ankara wants it to advance no further and considers the Euphrates a red line not to be crossed. Locals say they hear gunbattles at night, but struggle to tell which of the three sides are firing at each other. The YPG has already accused Turkish tanks of firing on its positions here in recent days. Ankara denies targeting the Kurds but has said its forces will defend themselves if attacked. A batch of US-trained rebels deployed to northern Syria meanwhile came under fire on Friday from rival militants, highlighting the threat they face on multiple fronts. "Of course if they clear Daesh out it'd be great. But I don't think it'll happen any time soon," said Karatas, 33, sat among plastic toys and kitchen appliances, drawing on a cigarette and doubtful of any quick resolution. "I have friends and colleagues on the other side who say ISIL has placed mines all along the border area and in the town. It will be very difficult to clean up Jarablus," he said, using one of the acronyms to describe Daesh. This town used to thrive on cross-border trade. Now, unemployed men gather at a tea-house, playing endless games of cards. Karatas once made 3,000 lira ($1,080) a week in his store, largely from passing truck drivers. Now his takings have all but evaporated and only one other shop on the main street is still open. Even the baker and money changer have left town. It is a far cry from the days before Syria's civil war, when the two countries once held joint cabinet meetings and abolished the need for visas in a bid to deepen trade ties. "Frankly I preferred it when the Syrian state was in control," Karatas said. "The Assad regime was not so bad. Not as bad as what's here now." — Reuters
