Turkish Foreign Minister: Turkish observation point not besieged north of Hama
North-Press Agency
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu denied strongly during a press conference with his Lebanese counterpart Gebran Bassil in Beirut, Lebanon, that there was no besieged Turkish observation point in northwest Syria.
The Turkish Foreign Minister’s claim came as pictures and videos were published by members of the Syrian army, showing Syrian government forces surrounding the Turkish observation point in the area of Morek, which is located within the circle held by the Syrian Army days ago.
Cavusoglu also claimed that there were clashes between the armed opposition groups and Syrian government forces nearby the observation point in Morek, stressing that there were contacts between Ankara and Moscow to reach a “political solution”, and to ensure the establishment of a “safe zone” for the return of Syrian refugees.
The mentioned statement coincided with airstrikes carried out by the Syrian fighter jets, which targeted Kafr sajnah, Maarat Harmah and Jarganaz areas in the southern countryside of Idlib, in addition to al-Bawabiya and Barqoum areas in Aleppo southern countryside, which resulted in the death of a person and the injury of others.
The deployment of Syrian government forces has besieged the Turkish observation point, which was established in the village of Morek on April 4, 2018, which is the ninth observation point that was established by Turkey in the region.
There was also contradictions over the fate of the point, whether it would remain in its place or would be moved to contact lines between the Syrian government forces and the armed opposition groups.
While the Syrian military and strategic analyst Ahmed Hamadeh told North-Press that moving the Turkish ninth point (Morek) affects its prestige, and Turkey does not want to evacuate this point, the matter that explains the purpose of Turkish statements in this way, which will produce an understanding on this regard.