Indications of a large Turkish military operation in Idlib

According to indications that a large Turkish military operation could be launched in Idlib governorate to repel the forces of the Syrian regime, which continue to support a large-scale Russian attack, which prompted Ankara to demand Moscow stop the "aggression".

Al-Jazeera correspondent Suhaib Al-Khalaf said that Turkish military frameworks comprising special forces, tanks and armored vehicles crossed the border extensively last night towards Idlib, indicating that Turkish forces had created two new observation points.

He added that the Turkish forces closed the road to Jericho (12 km south of Idlib) and to the village of Qaminas, where a Turkish observation post was located.

He added that all this is among the indications that a Turkish military action is approaching in the region, after the recent large incursion by the Syrian regime forces by controlling strategic areas such as Ma`rat al-Numan and Saraqib.

Al-Jazeera correspondent quoted the Syrian armed opposition and its sources in the Turkish army as "the zero hour" approached a military action by the Turkish army and the Syrian National Army, which is affiliated with the opposition, towards the areas controlled by the regime forces around Saraqib and near the international road between Saraqib and Ma`rat al-Numan.

The sources were also quoted as saying that the preparations for the possible military operation are nearing completion.

After the Syrian regime forces recently targeted two Turkish observation posts in Idlib province, killing 13 Turkish soldiers and wounding others, Ankara pushed with massive military reinforcements that included thousands of soldiers and dozens of tanks.

In addition to the immediate response to the two attacks that targeted the two observation points, Turkey had given the Syrian regime until the end of this month to withdraw its forces from the areas it had controlled, until the borders set by the "Sochi" agreement, and threatened that it would strike it anywhere if it attacked again the Turkish soldiers in northern Syria. .

"Stop the aggression"
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşo أوlu said yesterday that he had informed his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, on the sidelines of their participation in the Munich Security Conference "of the need to stop the aggression in Idlib and achieve a permanent cease-fire that is not violated."

Gawishoglu told reporters that a Turkish delegation will travel today to Moscow to discuss Idlib, after previous visits by a Russian delegation to Ankara.

Gawishoglu and Lavrov met on Saturday, with the latter telling reporters that parts of Idlib are still "one of the last hotbeds of terrorism."

He also said that the agreements between Moscow and Ankara mean a cease-fire and the establishment of a demilitarized zone, but the most important thing is to draw a line between the moderate opposition and the terrorists.

Field developments
On the field, the Syrian regime forces expanded this morning, Monday, in the western countryside of Aleppo, where they managed to storm the village of Sheikh Aqil, which includes a Turkish observation post.

Earlier, sources told Al-Jazeera that a number of Turkish soldiers stationed in Sheikh Aqil area of ​​Aleppo countryside were injured yesterday evening in the shelling of the regime forces, while it was reported that Turkish forces responded to the shelling.

Sources from the Syrian opposition said that the Kurdish People's Protection Units had abandoned their positions in the Sheikh Aqil area to enable the regime forces to attack the Turkish observation post and the sites of the Syrian armed opposition.

The Syrian regime forces had taken control of the towns of Andan, Huritan, Bayanoun, and Kafr Hamra, west of Aleppo, and these towns had been bastions of the Syrian revolution since its inception.

In Idlib, the Al-Jazeera correspondent said that this morning, Russian aviation carried out raids on the city of Jericho (12 km south of Idlib governorate center), indicating that the shelling took place in an area where two Turkish convoys were stationed.

The reporter also pointed out that the warning sirens sounded this morning in the city of Idlib, amid the flight of aircraft believed to be Russian.