At least ’18 dead’ in IS attack on Kurd-held Syria town

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier that a “secure zone” would pave the way for the return of 1.7 million Syria refugees now sheltering in Turkey after fleeing their country’s four-year civil war. Then, Turkey conducted its own airstrikes against the extremists, apparently heralding a concentrated, unified effort by North Atlantic Treaty Organisation allies. A suicide bomber, identified as a member of ISIS, killed 32 youth activists in Suruc, a town in Turkey near the Syrian border.

“Turkey will show the strongest reaction to the slightest movement that threatens it”, he said.

One possible choice is the United States-trained New Syrian Forces, which was created to fight IS.

“I think the Turkish government is turning a blind eye to it”, he said.

“Turkey doesn’t intend to target IS (Isis) with this safe zone”.

The YPG is the armed wing of the Kurdish-Syrian Democratic Union Party (PYD) and has been one of the most effective forces against the Islamic State, but Ankara sees it as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) that has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in Turkey since the 1980s.

“Turkey is a front-line state in the battle against terrorism and we stand with our Turkish partners in responding to all forms of terrorist threats”, said Francois Lasalle in an email.

The plan dramatically intensifies American and Turkish military action against ISIS in Turkey. And while the Turkish government purportedly envisions the safe zone as a haven for tens of thousands of refugees the Islamic State has driven from their homes, it also fears the aid will allow Kurdish fighters to seize vast tracts of territory in northern Syria, mere miles away from Turkey itself. The previous distances involved for U.S.-led coalition aircraft from various locations in the lower Arabian Peninsula ensured mid-air refueling and longer flight times.

O’Brien said the United Nations was in constant contact with all the parties regarding new proposals.

“In terms of what exactly it looks like [after the Islamic State militants have been cleared out] and what the modalities are, that’s what we have to work out with [Turkey]”, the official said. A Syrian rights group said the airstrikes killed nine IS fighters.

When asked about the deployment of more troops to Turkey, Davis said “We’re talking about logistics – berthing and force protection and things like that”.