Turkey deploys 35 tanks to border town near Syria

Turkey's military on Monday deployed 35 tanks to a border town near Syria after mortar shells landed on Turkish territories, injuring three people, the semi- official Anadolu Agency reported.

As clashes between Islamic State militants (ISIS/ISIL) and the People's Protection Units (YPG) intensified in Kobane city in northern Syria, the Turkish Armed Forces stepped up security measures on the border line in Suruc town of the southeastern province of Sanliurfa.


A mortar shell landed on a house, injuring three people, while two shells landed in a vacant area. The military dispatched armored military vehicles on the border line after a fourth mortar shell hit the town.

Turkish soldiers do not let Syrian Kurds, who fled from the IS violence and have taken refuge in Turkey, cross into Syria, the agency reported.

On Saturday, four mortar shells landed on Suruc town, injuring two people, and the Turkish Army fired back, private Dogan News Agency reported.

Nearly 150,000 Kurdish Syrians have fled the IS and taken shelter in Turkey since the jihadist group's attacks advanced into northern Syria.
Sources: Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
29/9/14
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• Turkish tanks take up position on Syrian border next to besieged Kurdish town....

Turkish tanks took up position on a hill overlooking the besieged Syrian border town of Kobane on Sept. 29 after several shells hit Turkish territory as militants of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fired on the town, a Reuters correspondent said.

At least 15 tanks were positioned, some with their guns pointed towards Syrian territory, near a Turkish military base just northwest of Kobane. Plumes of smoke rose up as shells hit both the eastern and western sides of the city.

More tanks and armoured vehicles moved towards the Syrian border after at least two shells hit Turkish territory on Sept. 29, without causing damage.

But a mortar shell that hit a house in a Turkish village on the Syrian border late Sept. 28 left three people wounded, the military said on its website. It said Turkey's armed forces responded in kind.The military said it had fired back following the incident.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said ISIL fighters had advanced within five kilometers of Kobane on Sept. 29. "It is the closest distance ISIL has come so far," said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the London-based monitor.

Meanwhile, the Turkish Parliament is set to discuss joining anti-ISIL coalition. The government said Sept. 29 it was likely to submit motions to parliament within 24 hours requesting extended mandates for military action in Iraq and Syria, so Ankara can join the U.S.-led international coalition against ISIL militants.......http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkish-tanks-take-up-position-on-syrian-border-next-to-besieged-kurdish-town.aspx?pageID=238&nID=72319&NewsCatID=352
29/9/14