Following ISIS leader killing, Turkish Interior Minister visits Idlib
IDLIB, Syria (North Press) – Following the killing of ISIS leader in Idlib, northwest Syria, Turkish Interior Minister Suleiman Soylu visited the countryside of Idlib, which is under the control of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS-al-Nusra Front).
“Accompanied by Turkish officials and more than 20 Turkish journalists, the Turkish Interior Minister, Suleiman Soylu, arrived in the city of Sarmada, adjacent to the Syrian-Turkish border, north of Idlib,” North Press reported local sources.
Soylu entered from Bab al-Hawa border crossing with Turkey, with the protection of the HTS militants that control the area.
The visit of the Turkish Interior Minister comes days after the killing of the ISIS leader by the Global Coalition in the border town of Atmeh, which is about 20 kilometers away from the place of the visit.
Soylu and leaders of the Turkish army and police had previously visited areas in Idlib and Aleppo in mid-2021.
The Turkish army is deployed in large areas in Idlib, Aleppo, Raqqa and Hasakah, north and northwest of Syria, and these areas are under the control of Turkish-backed opposition faction plus Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.