Syria-Turkey border cleared of IS, Turkish PM says September 5, 2016 - 10:20 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey's PM has said Syrian rebels backed by its military have driven out "all terrorist organisations" from a strip of Syrian land bordering Turkey, BBC News reports. Monitors said the presence of so-called Islamic State (IS) on the border had been ended. Turkey also describes Kurdish groups as terrorists. The advance cuts off IS supply lines it used to import fighters and weapons. Separately, Syrian state forces recaptured parts of Aleppo lost to rebels last month. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim made the announcement about Ankara's military successes in a televised speech on Sunday, September 4. As well as IS, Turkey considers the YPG, a Syrian Kurdish group, to be a terrorist group. The YPG, which is backed by the US-led coalition, had been gaining territory in the north of Syria. Yildirim said Turkey would never allow the formation of an artificial state in the north of Syria. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said "rebels and Islamist factions backed by Turkish tanks and warplanes" had taken several villages on the border between Turkey and Syria "after IS withdrew from them, ending IS's presence on the border".  Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads.   Partner news |  Latest news Erdogan wants “realistic road map” for relations with Armenia  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called for a “new realistic road map” for relations with Armenia.Armenia-Azerbaijan: Experts launch work on determining coordinates Expert groups from the countries started the process of determining the coordinates based on geodetic measurements.Yerevan says did not expect CSTO in peacekeeping role Pashinyan has declared that the CSTO would be expected to come to the Armenia-Azerbaijan border as an ally of ArmeniaHenrikh Mkhitaryan wins Serie A title with Inter Inter Milan midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan admits that the team have long been imagining clinching Serie A against AC Milan. |
