Turkey to continue operations in Syria, Iraq after Istanbul blast
DAMASCUS, Syria (North Press) – On Friday, Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said his country’s troops continue to launch operations in Syria and Iraq, days after Istanbul blast.
Cavusoglu, in a statement to al-Arabiya Channel, said, “We will not stop our operations in Syria and Iraq.”
He added, “Our troops will continue striking leaders of Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and People’s Protection Units (YPG) in Syria and north Iraq.”
The PKK, which is included in the international list of terrorist organizations, has been fighting Turkey for about four decades under the alleged goal of gaining the rights of the Kurdish people.
His statement came days after Istanbul blast on November 13, killing six and wounding dozens.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Commander in Chief, Mazloum Abdi, denied involvement in the blast.
Abdi said in a tweet, “We stress that our forces have nothing to do with the Istanbul explosion.”
The commander emphasized on their rejection to the Turkish claims “which accuse our forces of carrying out the attack.”
Syria’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Faisal Mekdad warned on November 16 Turkey against any exploitation of Istanbul blast incident and using it as a pretext to launch new cross-border military operations.
He stressed that Syria is aware of the Turkish plots. “We have understood the message, and Syria will defend every atom of its territory.”