In a major tactical shift, Turkish warplanes struck Islamic State (ISIS) group targets on Friday across the border in Syria, Turkish officials announced — a move that came a day after ISIS militants fired at a Turkish military outpost, killing a soldier.Turkey, which spans the intersection of Europe and Asia and borders the West Asia, had long been reluctant to join the US-led coalition against the extremist group.
In a related, long-awaited development, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan confirmed that Turkey had agreed to let the US use a key base in southern Turkey for military operations against the militants “within a certain framework.” He did not elaborate on the agreement, which a US official said was reached during a phone call this week with President Barack Obama.
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the airstrikes on Friday had “removed potential threats” to Turkey, hitting their targets with “100 per cent accuracy.” He did not rule out further airstrikes, saying Turkey was determined to stave off all terror threats against it.The private Dogan news agency said as many as 35 ISIS militants were killed in one of the three targets hit. The agency did not cite a source for the report and there was no official confirmation. A human rights group in Syria said some ISIS militants were killed, but not that high number.
“This was not a point operation, this is a process,” Davutoglu said. “It is not limited to one day or to one region...the slightest movement threatening Turkey will be retaliated against in the strongest way possible.”For their part, Turkish police launched a major operation on Friday against terror groups including Islamic State, carrying out simultaneous raids in Istanbul and 12 provinces and detaining more than 290 people.
A Government official said three F-16 jets took off from Diyarbakir air base in southeast Turkey early Friday and used smart bombs to hit three IS targets. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of Government rules requiring authorisation for comment, said the targets were two command centers and a gathering point for ISIS supporters.
Davutoglu said Turkish planes did not violate Syrian airspace on Friday, but he did not rule out incursions in the future. He denied news reports claiming that Turkey had told the Syrian regime about the airstrikes, but said it had contacted NATO allies before the operation.