On Friday, the US Consulate General in Hewlêr (Erbil) in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) issued a security alert advising its citizens not to travel to areas in northern Syria and Iraq in light of a possible Turkish military operation in the coming days.

“U.S. Consulate General Erbil is monitoring credible open-source reports of potential Turkish military action in northern Syria and northern Iraq in the coming days.  The U.S. government continues to strongly advise U.S. citizens to avoid these areas,” ," the statement said. The measures recommended are: "Avoid the border areas. Exercise caution if unexpectedly in the vicinity of large gatherings or protests. Keep a low profile. Monitor local media for updates.”

The US State Department's travel advisory for Iraq remains at Level 4, with travel discouraged due to "terrorism, kidnapping, armed conflict, civil unrest and Mission Iraq’s limited capacity to provide support to U.S. citizens.”

Earlier on Friday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu told al-Arabiya channel that his country's troops continue to conduct operations in Syria and Iraq. This comes a few days after the explosion in Istanbul on 13 November that killed six people and injured dozens.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced another major cross-border military operation in northern Syria at the end of May, naming the two towns of Manbij and Tel Rifat as targets. In northern Iraq, the Turkish army has been conducting a military operation against the guerrillas in the Medya Defence Zones since mid-April.