09 June 2020; MEMO: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that the situation in the north-west Syrian province of Idlib is progressing and improving, despite increased assaults on opposition positions by the Assad regime.
In an interview on the Turkish channel TRT News yesterday, Erdogan said: “Sometimes problems arise in Idlib on the M4 highway, but in general, things are going well. 200,000 refugees have already returned home.”
After Turkey’s severe retaliation against the Syrian regime’s killing of 34 Turkish soldiers in February, a ceasefire deal was struck between Turkey and Russia on 5 March, restoring calm to the province following a year of the bombardment and military offensives by the regime and Russia.
As part of that deal, it was agreed that the strategic M4 highway running through southern Idlib would form the basis of a demilitarised zone which would extend six kilometres either side of the highway, with joint Russian-Turkish patrols being conducted along it.
Local civilians and opposition groups have strongly opposed and protested against the presence of Russian forces in the patrols, however, resulting in clashes between differing groups including between Idlib’s dominant Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) militia and Turkish forces.
Shelling by the regime forces and retaliations by the opposition forces has taken place on numerous occasions since the ceasefire deal in March, but the truce has still officially held. Erdogan’s statements on the stability within Idlib come amid the increase in these hostilities in the province, where regime forces have renewed their assault particularly in Jabal Al-Zawiya and forced civilians to once again flee further north.
Over the past week, there have also been reports emerging of the Syrian regime and its allies’ plan to renew the military offensive on Idlib, with rights groups warning of the oncoming assault and Turkey informing the opposition groups to be prepared amid intelligence it received of the regime’s aims.
