Turkey has ordered residents to evacuate a Turkish border town that lies opposite the Syrian town of Jarabulus controlled by Islamic State (IS) jihadists, television reported.
Police warned residents through loudspeakers to evacuate “for safety reasons” the town of Karkamis, which was hit by a series of mortars fired from IS-held areas.
Reports have also suggested Ankara-backed rebels are preparing a major operation to seize Jarabulus from the jihadists.
Turkey pledged Tuesday to give “all kinds of support” to push jihadists out of Jarabulus.
A Turkish army tank and an armored vehicle are stationed near the border with Syria, in Karkamis, Turkey, Tuesday, August 23, 2016. (IHA via AP)
Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu made the promise amid reports Ankara-backed rebels were massing on the border in anticipation of the impending operation against IS.
“We will provide all kinds of support to the Jarabulus operation,” Cavusoglu says, promising to help “cleanse” IS from neighbouring countries.
“We do not want Daesh to exist in Iraq and Syria,” he tells reporters, using an Arabic acronym for the IS group.
Turkey on Tuesday pounded IS positions in Syria with artillery strikes after a deadly attack near its border killed at least 54 people.
“We shelled ISIS positions across the border,” said a Turkish official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
— AFP
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