Türkiye's defense minister denies targeting US base during Syria airstrikes

 Photo: AA

National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar has denied the claims that areas near a US base was hit in Türkiye's airstrikes in northern Syria. 

Speaking to reporters in the capital of Ankara, Akar said that it is "out of the question" for Türkiye to harm coalition forces or civilians during its cross-border military operations.

Türkiye targets "only terrorists and their hideouts" during the operations, the minister said. "Our most important principle is not to harm civilians and the environment."

Several media outlets reported that one airstrike hit a few hundred meters from the base about 45 kilometers from the border. The base was empty at the time of the strike, said the US Central Command.

The Pentagon said on Wednesday that the airstikres "directly threatened the safety of US personnel working in Syria with local partners."

There have been also reports about attacks on infrastructure, including oil and natural gas installations and oil stations.

In a statement reacting to the operations, the Pentagon also cited such reports and expressed concerns, as well as warning Türkie that the attacks were a direct threat to the safety of US personnel.

The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) yesterday (November 24) reported 45 deaths after strikes on several locations in the provinces of Al-Hasakah, Al-Raqqa and Aleppo. Twenty-one of them were members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and 18 were from the government forces, it said.

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)