<p>Damascus on Thursday said Syrians are unified against a cross-border Turkish assault, in its first statement since deploying troops in Kurdish-controlled areas to contain Ankara's offensive.</p>.<p>"The Syrian government renews its absolute rejection and strong condemnation of Turkey's blatant aggression," said a foreign ministry statement carried by state news agency SANA.</p>.<p>It "affirms the cohesion among Syrians, all Syrians, and their unity, more than ever, under Syria's national flag."</p>.<p>The foreign ministry statement accused Ankara of causing "death and destruction" in an offensive that revealed Ankara's "expansionist aims," SANA reported.</p>.<p>Nine days since Turkey launched an offensive against Kurdish groups in northern Syria, dozens of civilians have been killed and 300,000 have been displaced, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.</p>.<p>Damascus on Sunday clinched a deal with Kurdish forces that saw troops deploying in parts of the Kurdish-run northeast, including the key areas of Manbij and Kobane.</p>.<p>The deployment is the most significant by the army since it began a large-scale pullout from the region in 2012.</p>.<p>It came after the US pulled out from Syria's northern region last week, exposing its Kurdish partners to a Turkish assault.</p>.<p>What the Kurds resent as a US betrayal paved the way for a desperate deal with Damascus, despite long-standing scepticism.</p>.<p>Marginalised for decades, Syria's minority Kurds carved out a de facto autonomous region across some 30 per cent of the nation's territory after the devastating war broke out in 2011.</p>.<p>Damascus, which has previously accused the Kurds of treason over their alliance with Washington, rejects their self-rule and wants central government institutions restored in Kurdish-held areas, especially in the oil-rich east.</p>
<p>Damascus on Thursday said Syrians are unified against a cross-border Turkish assault, in its first statement since deploying troops in Kurdish-controlled areas to contain Ankara's offensive.</p>.<p>"The Syrian government renews its absolute rejection and strong condemnation of Turkey's blatant aggression," said a foreign ministry statement carried by state news agency SANA.</p>.<p>It "affirms the cohesion among Syrians, all Syrians, and their unity, more than ever, under Syria's national flag."</p>.<p>The foreign ministry statement accused Ankara of causing "death and destruction" in an offensive that revealed Ankara's "expansionist aims," SANA reported.</p>.<p>Nine days since Turkey launched an offensive against Kurdish groups in northern Syria, dozens of civilians have been killed and 300,000 have been displaced, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.</p>.<p>Damascus on Sunday clinched a deal with Kurdish forces that saw troops deploying in parts of the Kurdish-run northeast, including the key areas of Manbij and Kobane.</p>.<p>The deployment is the most significant by the army since it began a large-scale pullout from the region in 2012.</p>.<p>It came after the US pulled out from Syria's northern region last week, exposing its Kurdish partners to a Turkish assault.</p>.<p>What the Kurds resent as a US betrayal paved the way for a desperate deal with Damascus, despite long-standing scepticism.</p>.<p>Marginalised for decades, Syria's minority Kurds carved out a de facto autonomous region across some 30 per cent of the nation's territory after the devastating war broke out in 2011.</p>.<p>Damascus, which has previously accused the Kurds of treason over their alliance with Washington, rejects their self-rule and wants central government institutions restored in Kurdish-held areas, especially in the oil-rich east.</p>