Erdoğan offers assistance to ‘our brothers in Idlib’ as fighters from Free Syrian Army carry out campaignTurkish forces are preparing to enter Idlib province to support rebel forces opposing both the Syrian regime and jihadist insurgents, the Turkish president has said. Many Syrians had fled to Idlib from the neighbouring Aleppo province, which was rocked by heavy fighting last year, and Turkey intended to support them, Erdoğan said. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham is not party to a deal brokered by Russia, Turkey and Iran for the safe zone in Idlib province, one of four such “de-escalation” zones in Syria. Media reports have pointed to a heavy deployment of military hardware and personnel by the Turkish army to its southern border area in recent weeks. This year Turkey ended its months-long Euphrates Shield operation against jihadists and Kurdish forces in Aleppo province that involved both the Turkish army and Syrian rebels.

Source: The Guardian October 07, 2017 11:14 UTC