18 ISIL militants ‘neutralized’ in northern Syria: Military

ANKARA

AA photo

Eighteen Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants were “neutralized” in northern Syria over the last 24 hours as part of the Euphrates Shield operation, the Turkish military said early on Jan. 19. 

Turkish authorities use the word “neutralized” in their statements to imply the militants in question were either killed, captured or surrounded.    
 
Turkish Armed Forces also hit 182 ISIL targets, including shelters, defense points, command and control facilities, and vehicles, a Turkish General Staff statement said.

Coalition forces also hit three targets on the 149th day of the operation.

The Turkish army is supporting Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters in their fight to liberate al-Bab from the jihadist group.      

The statement said that Russian jets also hit ISIL targets in the al-Bab region as part of an agreement with Russia.     
 
On Jan. 18, a Russian military commander said that Russian and Turkish air forces have conducted their first joint air operation against ISIL in Syria.      

Since the start of the operation, 2,970 handmade explosives and 43 mines have been neutralized under controlled conditions.      

Euphrates Shield Operation began in late August 2016 to tighten border security, eliminate the terror threat along Turkish borders, and support opposition forces in Syria. The FSA is backed by Turkish artillery and jets in the operation.