Syrian government condemns Turkish ‘invasion’ of Idlib

CAIRO – 15 October 2017: The Syrian government firmly condemned Turkish "incursion" into Syria’s Idlib and demanded the immediate withdrawal of Turkish troops from the province; accusing the Turkish regime of supporting and funding terrorist groups in Syria, the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported Saturday.

“The Syrian Arab Republic condemns in the strongest terms the invasion of Idlib by Turkish army units, which represents a blatant aggression towards the sovereignty and security of Syrian lands and a glaring violation of international law,” an official source at the Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said.

The source added that the Turkish incursion into Idlib accompanied by Al-Nusra Front ‘terrorist’ group elements revealed an evident relationship between the Turkish regime and the terrorist groups. The matter now requires serious repercussions from the international community to oblige Erdogan’s regime to end his funding of terrorism, which has shed the blood of the Syrian people and caused regional and global destabilization.

“Syria demands the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of Turkish troops from Syrian lands. This aggression has nothing to do with the Asatana deal,” the source said.

Turkey sent a convoy of some 30 military vehicles into rebel-held northwest Syria through Bab al-Hawa crossing in Idlib, rebels and a witness said. Turkey claimed that its operation, along with the Syrian rebel groups it backs, is part of a deal reached last month with Russia and Iran in Astana, Kazakhstan, to reduce fighting between insurgents and the Syrian government, Reuters reported on Friday.