Turkey forces launch attack to free Syria town from Isis

Turkish tanks crossed into Syria today after heavy shelling of an area held by Islamic State forces.

It came as Turkey again targeted IS in the Syrian border town of Jarablus after its foreign minister promised to “cleanse” the border.

Military sources said 70 targets in the area had been destroyed by artillery and rocket strikes, and 12 by air strikes.

Shelling began at about 2am UK time, with 224 rounds fired in the space of one hour and 45 minutes.

Turkish special forces are already inside Syria as part of the operation to clear IS out of Jarablus.

Turkey’s state-run news agency said tanks had crossed into Syria as part of the offensive. In its report, the Anadolu Agency, which cited unnamed military officials, did not say how many tanks entered Syria. The private NTV television said as many as 20 tanks had crossed into Syria and that clashes were taking place at the border.

Turkish counter-terror police also launched dawn raids on IS members in Istanbul today. Arrest warrants were issued before the operation, which included a raid on an address in the Pendik district on the Asian side of the city, according to reports.

A force of 1,500 Turkish-backed Syrian rebels is said to be waiting across the border to take part in the Jarablus operation.

The Turkish military has also shelled positions belonging to the Kurdish YPG militia, apparently to deter them from taking Jarablus themselves.