Turkish enclave (Tomb) is evacuated
The NYT reports that Turkish forces entered Syria and evacuated the garrison at the tomb and the tomb's contents:
Quote:
The Turkish Army launched an operation into Syria to evacuate soldiers guarding the Tomb of Suleyman Shah, which has been besieged by Islamic State militants, and move the tomb’s remains, an official and Turkish news media reported on Sunday.The military then destroyed what was left of the site to prevent the militants from using the enclave, and one soldier was killed by accident during the operation, CNN Turk said Sunday, citing military officials.
The operation, called “Sah Firat,” began on Saturday and involved a large convoy of tanks and other heavy weaponry that entered Syria through Kobani....
Link:http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/22/wo...orts-say.html?
The BBC has a report, with some footage of the returning Turkish convoy and this:
Quote:
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the remains of Suleyman Shah would be moved elsewhere in Syria.
Turkish Withdrawal: The Implications
A thorough joint commentary by a RUSI SME and 'Turkey Wonk':https://turkeywonk.wordpress.com/201...-implications/
It is interesting to note the tomb's new home is in the "grey zone" in Syria @ Eshme village; the zone is a narrow area where local rebel groups do not exert full control.
From the conclusion:
Quote:
Turkey, however, has proven yet again that its role in the Syrian conflict must not be overlooked. It has links to all the main actors operating in northern Syria and is able to generally get its way with most of them, albeit with the occasional disagreement. The biggest change appears to be Ankara’s approach to ISIS. Since 2013, Turkey had treated ISIS as an irritant, rather than a major security threat, but the Suleyman Shah operation is the clearest sign to date that this approach is changing.
They conclude that Turkey's role will remain limited.
With an ally like Turkey?
Yesterday 'National Interest' had an article 'Turkey's Secret Proxy War in Libya?', which ends almost with:
Quote:
If Turkey were backing Libya’s jihadists, it would fit a dangerous pattern of Turkish support to extremist regional actors.
Link:http://nationalinterest.org/feature/...ar-libya-12430
Then today Al-Monitor has a Turkish author writing 'Pakistan warns Turkey: Don’t make our mistakes', citing a Pakistani politician:
Quote:
I warned Davutoglu when he was here, ‘You are repeating in Syria the mistakes we made in Afghanistan. Organizations you support now will turn against you.’ Pakistan was wrong in becoming party to the war in Afghanistan and was wrong in supporting the Taliban. We are now paying the costs of these mistakes."
Link:http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/orig...mistakes.html?
Pentagon Chief: Turkey Needs to Do More to Fight IS
Pentagon Chief: Turkey Needs to Do More to Fight IS
Entry Excerpt:
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Why is Turkey Attacking the Kurdish Militants Instead of ISIS?
Why is Turkey Attacking the Kurdish Militants Instead of ISIS?
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Changing the regional equation
After a six year hiatus Israel and Turkey are friends again, which will be a lot more than diplomacy:
Quote:
The reconciliation deal between Israel and Turkey will see a return to normal diplomatic relations, but ties are unlikely to have the warmth that they did in the past. It is Turkey's growing diplomatic problems - strategic tensions with Russia; difficulties with Europe due to the growing authoritarianism of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan; and above all the failure of Turkey's Syria policy (which has also soured ties with Washington) - that have prompted this move.
Link:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-36639834
FP added:
Quote:
Netanyahu credited U.S. Vice President Joe Biden for acting as a peace broker between Israel and Turkey.