Syria says Turkish attacks won’t be able to protect terrorists

While Turkey continues with military deployment on Syrian border, Syrian army said Turkish attacks will not succeed in protecting terrorism or halting army operations in Idlib and west of Aleppo.

The General Command of the Army and Armed Forces said that the Turkish attacks will not succeed in protecting terrorism nor will they dissuade the army from continuing its operations in Idleb province and in the west of Aleppo to cleanse them of terrorism in all its forms and to restore security and stability to all areas across Syria, SANA news agency reported.

In a statement on Tuesday, the General Command said the Turkish regime continues to escalate its aggressive acts and transgressions upon Syrian geography in violation of international law and the concept of the sovereignty of independent states in an attempt to halt the advance of the Syrian Arab Army and to prevent the fall of armed terrorist groups in Idlib and west of Aleppo.

SANA quoted the General Command as saying that: “the Turkish regime has deployed new military forces and escalated its aggression intensively, targeting areas populated by civilians and positions of the army units with rocket shells to help the terrorists maintain control over territory, keep using civilians as human shields, and carry out systematic crimes and vandalism.”

Accordingly, the statement said the Armed Forces will continue carrying out their constitutional and national duties, and they are ready to respond to the Turkish occupation’s attacks and defend the safety of the country and its people.

On the other hand, the Turkish state that has already invaded parts of Syria and supports the al-Nusra mercenaries in Idlib, has increased its military deployment to the Syrian border amid escalated confrontations with the Damascus regime forces in recent days. A convoy of 60 military vehicles has arrived in Hassa and Kırıkhan districts of the Hatay province bordering Syria.

AKAR CALLS FOR SUPPORT FROM NATO

In the meantime, Turkish Minister for National Defence Hulusi Akar called for the NATO, Europe and the world to provide “concrete support” regarding the Idlib crisis.

In an interview with The Associated Press, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that Turkey would not vacate any of its 12 observation posts in Idlib and warned that Turkish soldiers were under orders to retaliate forcefully to Syrian attacks on the military posts.

“In the event of any action against them, they have been given instructions to retaliate even more powerfully," Akar said. “In the event anything happens, there will be retaliation. We expect the regime to not take any action under any circumstances.”

“We have said over and over that we would not pull back our personnel, soldiers from there. They will continue their mission," he added.

JEFFREY IN ANKARA

At a time of repeated confrontations between the Syrian and Turkish regimes, U.S. Special Envoy for Syria James Jeffrey, has visited Turkish capital Ankara to discuss the latest developments regarding Idlib.

Jeffrey said they were in Turkey to observe the situation together with the Turkish government, remarking that they wanted to provide support as much as possible.