Merkel urges Erdogan to immediately end Syria offensive

BERLIN: German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Sunday urged President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to halt Turkey´s offensive in northern Syria immediately, warning it could spark further destabilisation of the region and a resurgence of the IS militant group.

In a phone call with Erdogan, Merkel "spoke in favour for an immediate end to the military operation", the chancellor´s office said in a statement.

The operation threatens to drive large parts of the population from their homes, she said, noting that it would also risk "destabilisation of the region and lead to a resurgence of the IS".

Germany and France on Saturday said they were suspending arms exports to Turkey over its offensive in Syria against the Kurdish People´s Protection Units (YPG).

Turkey sees the YPG as a terrorist off-shoot of Kurdish rebels in its own territory, but Western powers used the Kurds as the main ground force against the Islamic State group in Syria.