US Senators proposes to impose visa restriction for Turkish leadership

The bipartisan United States Senators have proposed a bill which called for a broad range of sanctions against Turkey including visa restrictions on Turkish senior officials in the wake of Ankara's offensive on the northern Syrian border.

"Mandatory sanctions go into effects upon enactment of this Act unless the administration certifies to Congress - every 90 days - that Turkey is not operating unilaterally... in Syria and has withdrawn its armed forces, including Turkish supported rebels, from areas it occupied during the operation beginning October 9, 2019," the bill presented by Lindsey Graham and Chris Van Hollen said on Wednesday.

US Senators Lindsey Graham and Chris Van Hollen crafted the bill as a response to Turkey's offensive in northern Syria that started earlier in the day, reported Sputnik.

Notably, Erdogan is scheduled to visit the United States next month.

Early in the day, the Turkish Army launched an offensive in Syria in which dozens of SDF fighters have been killed. "Our military has started the ground part of Operation Peace Spring," the ministry said in a statement.

This comes after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the start of 'Operation Peace Spring' against Syria Defence Forces' Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) "to neutralize terror threats against Turkey and lead to the establishment of a safe zone."

At least 40 commanders of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were killed and suffered injuries in attacks by Turkey Air Force on Wednesday in northeast Syria, reported Sputnik citing eyewitness.

The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria said they had repelled a ground attack by Turkey's military in the Syrian border town of Tal Abyad.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said that he would devastate Ankara's economy if its operation wipes out the Kurdish population in Syria.

According to Al Jazeera, when asked by a reporter if he was concerned Erdogan who will wipe out the Kurds, Trump replied: "I will wipe out his economy if that happens."

"I've already done it once with Pastor Brunson," Trump said, referring to US sanctions slapped on Turkey over the detention of a US citizen. "I hope that he will act rationally," he added.

( With inputs from ANI )