Turkey conducts first coalition air strikes against Islamic State

Turkey has announced that its fighter jets have carried out their first air strikes as part of the US-led coalition against Islamic State in Syria.

A Turkish foreign ministry statement said the jets began attacking IS targets across the border in Syria that were deemed to be threats to Turkey late yesterday.

Turkey agreed last month to take on a more active role in the fight against IS.

Turkish jets used smart bombs to attack IS positions in Syria, without crossing into Syrian air space.

Turkey also granted US jets access to a key air base close to the Syrian border.

The Turkish attacks that began yesterday were the first launched as part of the US-led campaign and came after Turkish and US officials announced that they had reached a technical agreement concerning their cooperation, which calls for Turkey to be fully integrated into the coalition air campaign.

“Our fighter aircraft, together with war planes belonging to the coalition, began as of yesterday evening to jointly carry out air operations against Daesh targets that constitute a threat against the security of our country,” the foreign ministry said, using the Arabic acronym for IS.

“The fight against the terrorist organisation is a priority for Turkey.”

The statement did not give more details on the targets.

IS advance

On Thursday, IS militants seized five villages from rebel groups in northern Syria, as they advanced toward the strategic town of Marea near the Turkish border.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and other groups said IS carried out a suicide bombing on the outskirts of Marea amid fierce fighting in the area.

The IS advance was in the northern Aleppo province, near where Turkey and the US have agreed to establish an IS-free safe zone.

PA