Syrian rebels hand border crossing to Turkish-backed interim government
A rebel group in northern Syria handed control of a major border crossing to Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces on Tuesday, a senior rebel official said.
By handing over the Bab Salama crossing at the Turkish border, the Sham Front rebel group aims to strengthen the Syrian Interim Government and help put an end to factional rivalries, explained Khaled Aba, head of the group's political office.
He urged other rebels to follow the Sham Front's example by handing over other crossings at the Turkish border.
"The interim government is the solution for the liberated areas to put an end to terrorism, to put an end to factionalism and the state of division in the liberated areas," said Aba, a member of the opposition delegation to Geneva peace talks.
The Bab Salama crossing is the main gateway into an opposition-held area of the north where neighbouring Turkey carved out a de facto buffer zone during a military incursion targeting Islamic State and Kurdish groups last year.
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Efforts have been underway in that area to merge and organise a plethora of rebel groups whose rivalries have led to factional fighting that has weakened the Syrian opposition throughout the conflict.
The Sham Front, a major force in Aleppo until the Syrian government and its allies defeated the opposition there last year, has joined a "national army" operating under the authority of the interim government's defence ministry, Aba said.
It has also handed control of its training camps to the defence ministry, he said.
The opposition government is based out of the town of Azaz, a short distance from the Turkish border, as well as in the Turkish city of Gaziantep.
Launched last year, Turkey's "Euphrates Shield" operation drove Islamic State out of a swathe of territory including the cities of al-Bab and Jarablus, preventing any further territorial gains by Kurdish groups deemed a threat by Ankara.
The Turkish army military said on Monday it had launched a reconnaissance mission in Syria's northwestern Idlib province in a bid to create a de-escalation zone.
"The Turkish armed forces began reconnaissance activities on 8 October to establish surveillance posts as part of the operation to be carried out in Idlib province," the armed forces said in a statement.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Saturday the start of the new military operation inside Syria by pro-Ankara Syrian rebels backed by the Turkish army.
The statement was the first confirmation by the Turkish army of involvement inside Syria in the latest operation.
The operation is part of efforts by Turkey, along with Russia and Iran, to set up the zone in line with accords in Astana peace talks aimed at ending the Syrian civil war.
They agreed on four such ceasefire zones in Syria as a prelude to negotiations.
Three zones are already in place - in Eastern Ghouta near Damascus, in central Homs, and in parts of southern Syria - and are being monitored by Russian military police.
Idlib is largely controlled by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a group led by al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate, which ousted more moderate rebels in recent months.
The pro-Turkish forces will need to oust HTS members in the area to allow Iranian, Russian and Turkish forces to implement the zone.
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