© AFP 2016/ BULENT KILIC
Turkish forces, with assistance from Syrian opposition fighters, occupied the city of Jarabulus in northern Syria and are currently conducting its offensive on al-Bab. Erdogan said that the aim of the operation was to clear the region from terrorists and to make it into a safety zone for refugees.
"IS [Daesh] is on its final days in al-Bab. Terrorists are trying to resort to their favorite means to keep the city: using suicide attackers, homemade explosives. Unfortunately, some Turkish soldiers were injured and killed. However, the road connecting al-Bab with Aleppo has already been taken under control. Hopefully, al-Bab will be soon liberated and its residents will return to their homes," Erdogan said at the press conference in Ankara.
14 Turkish Soldiers Killed In IS Attacks In Syria
Fourteen Turkish soldiers have been killed and 33 wounded in three separate suicide attacks by the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in northern Syria, the Turkish Army and state media say.
According to an army statement and TRT television, the attacks took place on December 21 in the Syrian town of Al-Bab, which Turkish troops and Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters are trying to capture from IS militants.
The toll is the heaviest single-day loss for the Turkish Army since August, when Turkey sent ground troops to support Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces in clearing a border area of IS militants and to curb Syrian Kurdish territorial expansion.
A total of 35 Turkish soldiers have died in northern Syria since the operation began.
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