Photo: AA.
ANKARA: Seventeen Islamic State terrorists were neutralized in northern Syria over the last 24 hours as a part of Operation Euphrates Shield, the Turkish military said early Wednesday.
Turkish authorities use the word "neutralized" in their statements to imply the terrorists in question were either killed, captured or surrounded.
The Turkish Armed Forces also hit 145 IS targets in Syria’s Al-Bab region, said a Turkish General Staff statement.
A total of 137 IS targets, including shelters, defense points, command and control facilities, and vehicles, were destroyed with heavy support from land and air. Turkish tanks, cannons, howitzers, and rocket launchers hit those targets as well as six shelters, one headquarters, and a would-be car bomb.
Eight IS targets were hit in Al-Bab and Suflaniyah by Turkish jets and combat drones.
Since the start of the operation, 2,945 handmade explosives and 43 mines have been neutralized under controlled conditions.
The Turkish army is supporting Free Syrian Army fighters in their fight to liberate Al-Bab from the terrorist group. Wednesday marks day 148 since the city was surrounded in order to liberate it.
Operation Euphrates Shield began in late August to tighten border security, eliminate the terror threat along Turkish borders, and support opposition forces in Syria. The Free Syrian Army is backed by Turkish artillery and jets as a part of the operation.
