The rocket attack on two Turkish tanks was the first to be blamed on IS in Turkey’s cross-border incursion “Euphrates Shield” operation which began two weeks ago.
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Military sources said that the Free Syrian Army (FSA) backed by coalition forces have liberated two villages from Daesh terrorists in Northern Syria and the Turkish tanks have been targeted during the operation.
In order to eliminate the threats springing from the “Islamic State” (IS, aka, ISIS, ISIL or Daesh) terrorist group on Turkey’s border, Turkish troops should enter 40 kilometers into Syria, said Kuloglu, adding this will enable Turkey to secure itself from the missile attacks by the IS. “During the clashes with DAESH terrorists, three soldiers were killed and five others wounded”, the statement read. They discussed Turkey’s Euphrates Shield operation and the US support for it, as well as “planning for the Mosul campaign in Iraq, and closer USA and Turkish cooperation to accelerate ISIL’s ultimate defeat”.
Militants from various armed groups are confronting the Syrian government troops.
In July 2015, a Turkish soldier was killed after IS militants shot across the border into Turkey.
Turkey wants to establish a safe zone in the 98-kilometre (61-mile) area stretching from Jarabulus to Azaz.
Ankara launched an unprecedented operation inside Syria on 24th of last month. This deprives the group of a key transit point for recruits and supplies.
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Al Rai, also known as Çobanbey in Turkish with a train station on the former Baghdad railway located inside Turkish territory, was heavily contested between the FSA and Daesh since March, and the town changed hands couple of times before finally being controlled by the FSA on August 28 with the support of Turkish ground forces and the Coalition air strikes.
