A auto bomb struck a military checkpoint in the central provincial capital of Homs, killing three soldiers and a civilian, and wounding 10 others, according to the governor of Homs. Most targeted security forces. In 12 days of the operation, Turkey’s backed FSA control took almost 600 square kilometers from PYD/PKK and ISIS fighters.
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Turkish soldiers, tanks and other equipment entered Syria from the Karkamis area in the Turkish province of Gaziantep during the operation.
A two-year ceasefire between Ankara and the PKK collapsed last year, after which Kurdish rebels launched frequent attacks on security forces in the country’s southeast. All the terrorist organizations are pushed back; they are gone, ” Yildirim said, speaking at a dinner with nongovernment organizations in the southeastern city of Diyarbakir. The Observatory said the blast killed five members of the Kurdish police force, the Asayesh, and three civilians. Activists claim innocent civilians have also been killed in the offensives.
The rebels advancing from Jarablus say they captured three more villages from the extremists Saturday.
Obama said after meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Sunday that the two leaders had discussed a peaceful transition of power in Syria. All types of terrorism are bad.
Turkey and allied Syrian rebels have been fighting US -backed Kurdish forces known as the People’s Protection Units (YPG) to prevent the Syrian Kurdish militias from taking more territory in northern Syria. “To avoid this terror corridor, coalition forces should show solidarity with Turkey regarding this struggle”.
The U.S. moved quickly to de-escalate tensions between the two groups it considers close allies so that Turkey could refocus its military goals on defeating Islamic State, according to officials familiar with the situation.
Yildirim said criticisms of Turkey’s clashes with Kurds in Syria “are without foundation”.
The Turkish army launched on Aug 24 the “Euphrates Shield” cross-border operation to drive out IS and other militants through the FSA fighters, who are bolstered by Turkish weaponry, ammunition, artillery, and jets, Xinhua news agency reported.
The operation, called Euphrates Shield, was also aimed at stopping the advance of US-backed Kurdish forces, which are also battling the extremist group.
Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) revealed that that the FSA now controls 10 regions in northern Syria, including Arap Izzah, El Fursan, Al Athariyah, Sheikh Yakoub, Vukuf, Ayyasa, and Al Mutminah, as well as Idalat, Talyah Darbiyah, and the Kubba Turkuman Airport in the El Rai region. This leaves them a wide ribbon of territory they’ll be expected to defend, with the only towns of note on the easternmost and westernmost edges.
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The United States had said on Saturday it some Islamic State targets in the region, but it did not say where.
