Turkish forces and their Syrian rebel allies have begun their push against Kurdish militia in north Syria. Ankara says its three-day-old operation in the Afrin region would be completed swiftly. Our reporter Michal Bardavid has more.

MICHAL BARDAVID TURKISH-SYRIAN BORDER The operation is continuing today, we expect more airstrikes and shelling by the Turkish army. Turkey has also been shelling from the border town of Kilis. Meanwhile, local reports are saying that 11 towns have now been captured from YPG, but this still needs to be confirmed by Turkish armed forces.

There were some pro-Kurdish protests in Istanbul and Ankara on Sunday, Turkish police used rubber pellets to disperse the crowds, detaining at least 12 people in Istanbul. There were also some more comments by President Erdogan – the YPG group that Turkey is now attacking due to security concerns was backed by the US in the fight against ISIL. Erdogan warned the group saying it should not rely on Washington's support to defeat Turkey.

There were some international reactions to the operation. Russia has stated it was concerned. There were some reactions from Western countries as well. The US and France urged restraint and said the focus should stay on ISIL. France called for an emergency meeting by the UN security council which will convene today and discuss the operation.

The Security Council will assess all the humanitarian risks concerning the operation and it will be significant to see if any decisions are made and whether they will have an impact on Turkey going forward with the operation.