Anadolu Agency editors visit Syria's Al-Bab

By Kerem Kocalar

GAZIANTEP, Turkey (AA) - Anadolu Agency foreign languages and international news editors on Friday paid a visit to Syria’s northern Al-Bab city liberated from the Daesh terrorist group during Turkey's Operation Euphrates Shield in 2016.

They visited Elbeyli refugee camp in southern Kilis province where the Deputy Governor Omer Yilmaz informed them about the situation of Syrian refugees who fled their country due to civil war.

Operation Euphrates Shield was conducted from August 2016 to late March 2017 to improve security, support coalition forces and eliminate terror threats along the Turkish border.

The group later visited a strategic peak in Al-Bab and planted trees and met with Al-Bab local council members and Senol Esmer, head of the Humanitarian Aid Coordination Center.

Yilmaz said Turkey helped the Syrian refugees both in Turkey and in the liberated areas without expecting a gain.

"I thank the valuable Anadolu Agency editors who came from various countries of the world," Yilmaz said.

Esmer said the terrorist organization had inflicted serious damages to the city and its people. However, he added Turkey's efforts help restore normal life, education and infrastructure in the city.

On Monday, the agency’s editors from across the world met in Ankara as part of its Annual Editors Meeting.

Approaching its 100th anniversary in 2020, Anadolu Agency -- the source for trusted news -- offers news, photos and videos on Turkey, the world, the economy, sports, health and technology.

It currently posts news in Turkish, English, Arabic, French, Kurdish, Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian (BCS), Russian, Albanian, Persian, Macedonian, Spanish and Indonesian.

Anadolu Agency produces an average of 1,650 news stories, 2,330 photos and 400 videos daily from nearly every continent, making it a global news agency.