The situation in Syrian Idlib is escalating again. Numerous Turkish soldiers were killed in an air raid.
- The situation in Syrian Idlib , the last contested rebel province, is getting worse
- At least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in Syria
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatens to open the borders and calls for NATO support
Update, 9:20 a.m .: The Turkish government says it no longer wants to stop Syrian refugees on the way to Europe. Turkey will no longer close the borders for refugees "who want to go to Europe," a senior government official told AFP on Friday. Turkish media had previously reported that Turkey "opened" its borders to Greece and Bulgaria.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AKP spokesman, Omer Celik, told CNN Türk on Friday that during a government crisis meeting, it was noted that Turkey "could not withstand the pressure from newly arriving refugees." "There is only one thing the European Union can do and that is to help Turkey," he added. Erdogan had already threatened to open the borders at the end of last year.
First report, 8:53 am: After the death of at least 33 Turkish soldiers in the Syrian province of Idlib, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan demands international assistance. "We are calling on the whole international community to do its duty," said President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's communications director Fahrettin Altun on Friday night.
Syria: Erdogan calls on NATO for help
Ömer Celik, spokesman for Erdogan's * AKP party, said on television that NATO must stand with Turkey. According to information from the Anadolu news agency, he is said to have threatened to open borders to Europe for the refugees in the country. “Our refugee policy is the same, but we have a situation here. We can no longer keep the refugees ”.
Maas denounces war crimes in Syria at https://t.co/w31fRnxGYt #UNSicherheitsrat #Syrien
- Tagesschau (@tagesschau) February 27, 2020Turkish soldiers are said to have been killed in an airstrike by the Syrian government under Bashar al-Assad. Celik said: "The murderous regime and those who encourage it will pay the price for this wickedness in the hardest way." In retaliation, Turkey attacked positions of the Syrian government troops on Friday night, such as Turkish communications director Fahrettin Altun announced in a statement.
Syria: Turkish soldiers killed during airstrike
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) and more than a dozen other EU foreign ministers have appealed to the government of Syrian ruler Baschar al-Assad to end their offensive in the contested Syrian province of Idlib *. In an appeal published on Wednesday on the "T-Online" news portal, the diplomats are calling for the "immediate cessation of all fighting" in Syria. The ceasefire agreed in 2018 for the area must be observed.
A Syrian rebel fighter carries a soft toy through the city of Saraqib in Idlib.
© Bakr ALKASEM / AFP
"The regime in Syria is continuing its strategy of recapturing the country at all costs, regardless of its ramifications for the Syrian civilian population," the letter said. With the support of Russian warplanes, Assad's forces have intensified their attacks on Idlib since December. Almost a million people were driven out of Syria within a few weeks. *
* fr.de is part of the nationwide Ippen-Digital editors network.
Rubric list image: © AFP