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Monday, October 09, 2017, 20:20
Turkey says Turkish troops move into Syria's Idlib province
By Associated Press
Monday, October 09, 2017, 20:20 By Associated Press

This photo provided by the Syrian Civil Defense White Helmets shows Civil Defense workers and Syrian citizens gathering after an airstrike hit a market in Maaret al-Numan in southern Idlib, Syria, Oct 8, 2017. Activists and residents of Maaret al-Numan in southern Idlib said the airstrike in the town's market, killed and wounded several people. (SYRIAN CIVIL DEFENSE WHITE HELMELTS VIA AP)

ANKARA/BEIRUT — Turkey's military says Turkish troops have moved into Syria's northwestern Idlib province as part of an operation to enforce a "de-escalation" zone that was internationally agreed on in the region.

Monday's statement says the troops crossed into Syrian territory the previous day to begin "reconnaissance activities" in Idlib.

The statement did not say how many troops were involved, but added the force would create "observation points" in the region.

On Sunday, Turkish forces shelled areas along the border in an area dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey would not allow a "terror corridor" by Kurdish militia aiming to link its territories from eastern Syria to the Mediterranean, amid reports that the Turkish deployment could also serve to curb possible territorial gains by the U.S.-backed militants.

The Turkish troops, on Sunday, shelled areas along its border with Syria's northwestern province, an area dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants, as Turkey's president says an operation in the area to enforce a "de-escalation" zone was underway "without problems."

The process, which began with a step yesterday and started to be applied this morning, is continuing as you know and that effort is continuing in a calm way without problems

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President, Turkey 

Speaking Sunday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the de-escalation zones would be applied in Idlib with "Russia outside, Turkey inside" with Syrian opposition fighters it backs.

"The process, which began with a step yesterday and started to be applied this morning, is continuing as you know and that effort is continuing in a calm way without problems," Erdogan said, speaking in the western province of Afyonkarahisar at the closing ceremony of his ruling party's conference.

Earlier Sunday, Mustafa Sejari, spokesman for a Turkey-backed Syrian armed group, said Turkish artillery responded with shells after coming under attack from al-Qaida-linked fighters across the border. Turkey's private Dogan news agency reported that Turkey fired seven howitzer rounds into Idlib on Sunday.

The tension came a day after Turkey's president announced that his country has launched a "serious" operation in Syria's northwestern Idlib province with Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces, following international efforts for de-escalation in the war-torn country.

Sejari said the operation aims to deploy Turkish-backed opposition fighters in the province currently dominated by al-Qaida-linked militants.

"So far our forces have not entered Idlib," Sejari said in an exchange of messages with The Associated Press.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Turkish shells fell near a displaced people's camp along the border, causing a panic but no casualties. The Observatory said the shelling was followed by brief clashes and the lobbing of missiles as tension continued. The Observatory also said al-Qaida-linked militants have deployed new fighters to the area where the brief clashes occurred, in Kafr Lusin village, along the border.

The Observatory and another activist-operated news service, Thiqa, meanwhile reported that what appeared to be Turkish troops have entered Syria in a number of vehicles to deploy at an area between Idlib and Aleppo province. The reports say Turkish forces were escorted by al-Qaida-linked militants to Darat al-Ezzah area, which is only miles from Afrin, a Kurdish dominated enclave in western Syria. A Kurdish militiaman in Afrin confirmed that four Turkish vehicles were deployed in the area. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters.

There was no immediate Turkish comment on the reports. It was not immediately clear why or how there was an escort by al-Qaida-linked militants.

Erdogan said Sunday that Turkey would not allow a "terror corridor" by the Kurdish militia aiming to link its territories from eastern Syria to the Mediterranean.

He was referring to the US-backed Syrian Kurdish militants that Turkey considers terrorists. The official Turkish news agency Anadolu said Saturday the new deployment would serve as a "wall" between Kurdish-controlled Afrin in northwestern Aleppo and Idlib province.

The plan to enforce a de-escalation zone in Idlib involves deploying Turkish special forces and observation points, according to Sejari, from the Turkish-backed Al-Mutasim Brigades. He said the plan is to also foil "foreign projects" that aim to occupy the north of Syria under the pretext of fighting terrorism, in an apparent reference to the US-backed Kurdish forces.

Last year, the Turkish army launched a cross-border operation with Syrian opposition fighters to clear an area along its border of the Islamic State group and prevent the dominant Kurdish group from forming a contiguous entity from northeast to northwest Syria. There are no known plans by the Kurdish forces to take on al-Qaida-linked militants in Idlib.

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