Syrian forces enter Afrin. Russian diplomacy will be tested...

via Bloomberg

Syrian pro-government fighters entered the border town of Afrin to help Kurdish forces battle a Turkish incursion, state-run media reported, raising the risk of a direct conflict between the two countries.

With Syrian flags plastered on their armored vehicles, the paramilitary forces set out for Afrin to “defend our people against the Turkish aggression,” state-run Syrian television reported. Turkish troops entered Syria on Jan. 20 to expel Kurdish YPG fighters from the border area, viewing them as an extension of the Kurdish PKK separatist group that Turkey has fought for decades.

Story here. 

Defend our people against Turkish aggression.

Drink that in.

They're using paramilitary forces too.  That means something but I can't put my finger on it.

Doesn't really matter.  It's a chaotic battlefield.  Only by some miracle have we avoided clashes between US/Russian/Turkish forces.  When you have semi-pros involved the chances of mistakes happening increase substantially.

I would bet body parts I highly value that these paramilitary forces will take a shot or two at the Turks.  How they respond will tell us whether this thing turns even messier than it already is.