Reports: Türkiye strikes oil fields, 'ISIS camp' in northern Syria

Azaz, Syria (Photo: AA)

Türkiye continues drone strikes and artillery shelling in northeast Syria, targeting oil and natural gas installations, as well as locations where ISIS detainees are held, according to multiple reports.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that a warplane belonging to Türkiye on Wednesday (November 23) launched two strikes near the Al Hawl camp, which hosts about 60,000 people, mostly former ISIS members and their families.

A natural gas installation in the Dêrik (Al Malikiyah) in the Al Hasakah province was also hit on Wednesday night, according to the  Hawar News Agency (ANHA)

Citing three local sources, Reuters reported that Türkiye's drones also hit oil installations in northeast Syria.

Meanwhile, a rocket attack on the Azaz town in northwest Syria killed three people and injured eight others, the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

Türkiye on early Sunday announced the start of the "Operation Claw-Sword" against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in Iraq's north and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which it sees as "extensions" of the PKK.

The operation was launched in retaliation for the deadly November 13 bomb attack in İstanbul, for which Türkiye held the said groups responsible. The groups denied any involvement in the bombing.

What happened?

On November 13, a bomb attack in İstanbul's popular tourist area of Taksim killed six people and injured 81 others.

Türkiye claimed the PKK and the Kurdish groups in Syria had orchestrated the attack, citing statements of some suspects. Those groups denied involvement in the attack.

In the early hours of November 20, Türkiye launched airstrikes in the north of Syria and Iraq, targeting Kurdish groups.

Some 70 aircraft hit 89 targets, with 44 targets at a depth of 20 kilometers into Syria, the government announced.

On the same day, a rocket was fired from Syria near the Öncüpınar border crossing in Kilis, injuring eight security personnel. The Afrin Liberation Forces (HRE) claimed the attack.

The next day, a mortar attack targeted the border district of Karkamış in Antep, killing three civilians. No group claimed responsibility for the attack.

The National Defense Ministry announced on November 23 that it had hit more than 400 targets in four days in artillery strikes. (VK)