Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said Wednesday that military “operations will continue until all terrorist elements have been neutralized, until all threats to our borders, our lands and our citizens are completely over”.
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Despite the planning between Turkey and the USA that put the American side in charge of air cover in the hours when the attack took place, the air cover did not show up, while also delaying the Turkish side for an hour making several excuses, the source said.
“You tell lies that Turkey is weak in the fight against ISIL but when we save innocent lives from ISIS you go and write this”, he fumed.
The assault on the Kurdish-led forces has sparked global concern and Washington had said on Tuesday that the two sides had agreed to a ceasefire.
Turkey on August 31 denied it agreed to a USA -brokered truce with Kurdish-led forces in northern Syria, saying it would not compromise with what it labels a “terrorist” group.
Consequently, the Turkish Air Force scrambled its own aircraft which arrived “last minute” and hit IS targets, the source added.
Turkish troops clashed with the US-backed Kurdish Syrian forces around Jarablus to try to halt their advance and form a contiguous corridor on the border between Turkey and Syria.
A claim by the Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters on the U.S.’ reluctance for providing air cover to Turkish units fighting Daesh is likely to add more strain on the already tense relations between North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies Turkey and the USA following the failed Gülenist coup attempt of July 15.
Kurdish-backed fighters announced they have agreed to a US-brokered ceasefire with Turkey in northern Syria for an unspecified period of time.
Turkey crossed the border into Syria last week to help the rebel Free Syria Army recapture the town of Jarablus from Isis.
His comments were echoed by President Tayyip Erdogan’s spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, who said Turkey would continue striking Kurdish militia until they withdrew from the region where Turkish forces are fighting.
The general said that while he has not received any verbal assurances from Turkey that it will remain in Syria to fight the terror group, he has seen actions from Turkey that are “extraordinarily positive”, from moving west along the border of Jarablus to pursue IS, to continuing other partnering efforts against IS along the Mara Line, in Syria’s northwest.
Turkey has demanded that the YPG cross the Euphrates river into a Kurdish-controlled canton in Syria’s northeast. United States officials have threatened to withdraw backing for the YPG if it did not meet that demand, but said this had mostly happened.
“We agreed on a ceasefire with the Turkish state via the United states and the global coalition” that is fighting the Islamic State group, said Ali Hajo, spokesman of the Jarablus Military Council.
As well as battling Islamic State in Syria, Turkey has been rounding up suspected militants at home.
Turkey’s minister of European Union affairs dismisses claims that a cease-fire has been reached with Kurdish rebels in northern Syria.
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A top US general said Tuesday the Kurds had crossed back over to the eastern side of the Euphrates River, away from Manbij, in a move the USA hopes will put an end to the clashes.
