Turkey fires SAA west of Aleppo against the backdrop of the ‘a regime of silence’

By TOC On Apr 6, 2020

DAMASCUS, (BM) – Turkish artillery increasingly violates the ceasefire in the provinces of Idlib and Aleppo, established on March 6 according to the agreements of Russia and Turkey.

Since early April, the Turkish military has several times fired at positions of government troops on the territory of the base of the 46th regiment of the Syrian Armed Forces west of Aleppo.

This strategic facility is adjacent to the stronghold of the militants – the city of Atareb. Therefore, Ankara and the militants of the National Liberation Front (NLF), which it supports, conduct almost daily shelling in this direction, the Military Observer portal reports today, April 6.

A group of militants tried to penetrate the territory of the base and was fired upon by the Syrian military from heavy machine guns and automatic weapons. In response, the Turkish multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) opened fire on them. Several rockets exploded at the base. According to the Syrian command, there were no losses. The Islamists themselves report that the shelling was from the firing position of the Turkish military.

Turkish howitzers and MLRS opened fire on the base of the 46th Regiment also on April 2 and 3.

As BulgarianMilitary.com reports, much indicates that Ankara is carefully preparing for a possible resumption of hostilities in the north-west of the Arab Republic, where a ceasefire is currently generally being respected.

Over the past month since the establishment of the “silence regime”, the Turkish military regrouped both its forces and the NFO militants supported by them, deployed hundreds of additional armored vehicles, howitzers, MLRS and other strike weapons in Idlib and Aleppo provinces.

At the same time, Ankara’s mission to withdraw all “irreconcilable” Islamist militants from the southern regions of the Idlib front, assigned to it by Russian-Turkish agreements of March 5, was actually frustrated.

To the south of the M-4 highway (Aleppo-Latakia), along which a security corridor should be created in the Idlib de-escalation zone, terrorists remain, in particular the Islamic Party of Turkestan.

Background

In February, Turkey lost at least 62 troops killed in Syria, nearly 100 soldiers were wounded, dozens of Turkish armored vehicles were destroyed and more than ten drones, including drone, were shot down. Washington has repeatedly accused Moscow of involvement in the deaths of Turkish soldiers, Russia rejects these allegations.

In early March, the presidents of Russia and Turkey, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, concluded an agreement according to which a ceasefire came into force in the Idlib de-escalation zone.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad later said that if the US and Turkish military did not leave the country, Damascus would be able to use force.

The reason for the Russian-Turkish negotiations was a sharp aggravation of the situation in Idlib, where in January a large-scale offensive by the Syrian army against the positions of the armed opposition and terrorists began.

Government forces recaptured nearly half of the Idlib de-escalation zone and left behind a number of Turkish observation posts. After that, Ankara sharply increased its military contingent in the region and launched the operation “Spring Shield” to push the Syrian troops. Turkey is also supported by militants loyal to it.

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BulgarianMilitary.com
Editorial team