Turkey vows to continue operations against ‘ISIL, PKK’

Turkey has vowed to continue its operations against what Ankara says are the positions of the ISIL terrorist group as well as militants from the Turkish Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).

“The operations that were started today are not a single event but a process,” Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told reporters in Ankara in televised comments on Friday.

Davutoglu was referring to the aerial attacks carried out by three Turkish F-16 fighter jets against what was said to be ISIL targets on the Syrian soil, as well as the rounding up of 297 people, including 37 foreigners, in nationwide raids against suspected members of the ISIL, PKK and other groups.

The Turkish premier further said the Turkish warplanes were “100 percent” successful in their strikes inside Syria, adding, “The operation against IS (ISIL) reached its target and will not stop.”

Earlier in the day, a woman was gunned down in a shootout with police in the city of Istanbul during the security raids. She was allegedly a member of the Marxist Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C).

The aerial attacks and the arrest campaign were launched after at least 32 people were killed in a massive “terrorist” explosion in the Turkish town of Suruc, near the southern border with Syria. The attack was attributed to the ISIL.

“Whichever terrorist organization poses a threat to the borders of the Turkish Republic, measures will be taken without hesitation,” said Davutoglu. “No-one should have any doubt.”

“We are observing activity in Syria and on the border at every moment. Turkey will show the strongest reaction to the slightest movement that threatens it,” he added.

‘No matter what:’ Violating a country’s sovereignty

Turkey’s pledge to confront ISIL Takfiris comes despite its longtime support for the militancy against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with reports showing that Ankara actively trains and arms the Takfiri extremists operating in Syria, and also facilitates the safe passage of foreign terrorists into the Arab country.

Ankara has been engaged in a long conflict with the PKK, which has been seeking an autonomous Kurdish region inside Turkey since the 1980s.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has accused Syrian Kurds of trying to establish a state in Syria’s north, saying Ankara will leave no stone unturned to prevent such an establishment near its borders.

Erdogan vowed last month that Turkey “will never allow the establishment of a state in Syria’s north and our south. We will continue our fight in this regard no matter what it costs,” Turkish newspaper Today’s Zaman reported.

Earlier this month, the Turkish military called on all army commanders stationed along its border with Syria to be present at a meeting aimed at discussing a possible intervention in Syria.

Over the past weeks, Turkey has bolstered its military presence on its border regions with Syria, with tanks, anti-aircraft missiles, and by increasing the number of ground troops in the areas.

The Turkish airstrikes in Syria are a violation of Syrian sovereignty and can be prosecutable under international law.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk