Some background, for those of you who haven't been following the situation in Turkey and Syria
Finally, in January Erdogan began a campaign against "terrorism" in Syria by attacking SDF-held territory in Afrin. This seems to be in response to the SDF not obeying his ultimatum to withdraw from Manjib. US special are embedded with the Kurds in Manjib so he hasn't been stupid enough to attack Manjib directly.
I think it's worth stressing that while the YPG is loosely affiliated with the PKK, the YPG has, unlike ISIS, never engaged in terrorist attacks against Turkey, or at all. This is unlike ISIS, which Erdogan supported and which repayed him by killing his political opponents.
Speaking of which, Erdogan has been rounding up his political opponents and arresting anyone who criticizes him, including members of the board of the Turkish Medical Association for basically saying "war is hell."
Additionally, there are reports that the Turkish army is making no effort to spare Kurdish civilians, and the Turkish border guards are indiscriminately shooting refugees who try to cross into Turkey.
Official US reaction has been muted, which maybe shouldn't be surprising. What's more upsetting to me is that NATO leadership has more-or-less supported the Turkish operation. And while one former US Ambassador to Turkey has said that we need to hold Erdogan to account, another former US Ambassador to Turkey has parroted the Turkish government's line that the SDP and the PKK are the same thing.
I'm still seeing red, but given how little attention this has gotten I feel the need to mention this, as calmly as I can.