Turkey launched Friday its first air strikes against Islamic State (IS) jihadists inside Syria following the killing of a Turkish soldier in cross-border clashes.
Here is a recap of the main events in the area since a suicide attack killed 32 people in southern Turkey early this week.
- Monday, July 20 -
- The Syrian conflict spills over into neighbouring Turkey when an attack in the predominantly Kurdish town of Suruc kills 32 people and wounds a hundred others.
The blast tears through a rally of activists just across the border from Kobane, Syria, the scene of fierce clashes between Kurdish fighters and jihadists last year.
- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks of an "act of terror" and Prime Minister Ahmet Davotoglu adds: "Preliminary findings point to it being a suicide attack carried out by Daesh," an Arabic acronym for IS.
- Protests erupt in major Turkish cities against Ankara's alleged complicity with IS.
- Wednesday, July 22 -
- The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) claims the killing of two Turkish policemen in the border town of Ceylanpinar as "a punitive action" in revenge for the Suruc massacre.
A government spokesman denounces the murders as "a terrorist act perpetrated by a terrorist organisation."
- Turkish authorities identify the Suruc suicide bomber and say he spent time with IS in Syria.
- Erdogan speaks by phone with US President Barack Obama, vows to use all means available to track down those who committed the attack.
- Thursday, July 23 -
- Jihadists inside Syria open fire on a Turkish army border post in the Kilis region, killing a non-commissioned officer and wounding two soldiers.
- Turkish tanks shell IS positions in Syria, killing one fighter.
- In Diyarbakir, a majority Kurdish city in southeastern Turkey, gunmen kill a Turkish policeman and seriously wound another.
- US officials say Turkey will let Washington use the strategic Incirlik airbase for strikes against IS, while a US defense official says the two countries "have agreed to extend cooperation" against IS.
- Turkish daily Hurriyet says Turkey is mulling border reinforcement measures including observation zeppelins, a concrete border wall, fences separated by a military patrol road, observation towers and even a moat at some points.
- Friday, July 24 -
- Turkish F-16 jets hit IS targets just inside Syria for the first time, striking three targets with guided bombs.
- According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the warplanes killed nine IS fighters.
- The authorities say IS members, but also Kurdish militants and Marxists, are among almost 300 suspected extremists arrested in early morning raids in Istanbul and other cities.
A female member of a radical Turkish Marxist group is killed in clashes with police during the operation, the Anatolia news agency says.
- Erdogan confirms a deal under which the United States will be able to use the strategic Incirlik air base near Syria "within a certain framework".
Turkey launched Friday its first air strikes against Islamic State (IS) jihadists inside Syria following the killing of a Turkish soldier in cross-border clashes.
Here is a recap of the main events in the area since a suicide attack killed 32 people in southern Turkey early this week.
– Monday, July 20 –
– The Syrian conflict spills over into neighbouring Turkey when an attack in the predominantly Kurdish town of Suruc kills 32 people and wounds a hundred others.
The blast tears through a rally of activists just across the border from Kobane, Syria, the scene of fierce clashes between Kurdish fighters and jihadists last year.
– Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks of an “act of terror” and Prime Minister Ahmet Davotoglu adds: “Preliminary findings point to it being a suicide attack carried out by Daesh,” an Arabic acronym for IS.
– Protests erupt in major Turkish cities against Ankara’s alleged complicity with IS.
– Wednesday, July 22 –
– The Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) claims the killing of two Turkish policemen in the border town of Ceylanpinar as “a punitive action” in revenge for the Suruc massacre.
A government spokesman denounces the murders as “a terrorist act perpetrated by a terrorist organisation.”
– Turkish authorities identify the Suruc suicide bomber and say he spent time with IS in Syria.
– Erdogan speaks by phone with US President Barack Obama, vows to use all means available to track down those who committed the attack.
– Thursday, July 23 –
– Jihadists inside Syria open fire on a Turkish army border post in the Kilis region, killing a non-commissioned officer and wounding two soldiers.
– Turkish tanks shell IS positions in Syria, killing one fighter.
– In Diyarbakir, a majority Kurdish city in southeastern Turkey, gunmen kill a Turkish policeman and seriously wound another.
– US officials say Turkey will let Washington use the strategic Incirlik airbase for strikes against IS, while a US defense official says the two countries “have agreed to extend cooperation” against IS.
– Turkish daily Hurriyet says Turkey is mulling border reinforcement measures including observation zeppelins, a concrete border wall, fences separated by a military patrol road, observation towers and even a moat at some points.
– Friday, July 24 –
– Turkish F-16 jets hit IS targets just inside Syria for the first time, striking three targets with guided bombs.
– According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, the warplanes killed nine IS fighters.
– The authorities say IS members, but also Kurdish militants and Marxists, are among almost 300 suspected extremists arrested in early morning raids in Istanbul and other cities.
A female member of a radical Turkish Marxist group is killed in clashes with police during the operation, the Anatolia news agency says.
– Erdogan confirms a deal under which the United States will be able to use the strategic Incirlik air base near Syria “within a certain framework”.
