Turkey shelled Syrian-Kurdish YPG militia targets in Syria's Afrin province on January 24 as the operation dubbed 'OIive Branch' by Ankara entered its fifth day. The air and ground operation has opened a new front in Syria's multi-sided civil war and could threaten U.S. plans to stabilize and rebuild a large area of northeast Syria beyond central government control with the help of the YPG, who worked with Washington to drive out Islamic State militants in the region.