Turkish soldier martyred in Idlib, Syria

By Selma Kasap

ANKARA (AA) - One Turkish soldier was martyred and two others injured in an attack on an armored ambulance in northwestern Syria, according to Turkey's National Defense Ministry on Friday.

"The targets determined in the region were immediately brought under fire by our fire support vehicles and the necessary response was given," the ministry said in a written statement on the incident that occurred in the province of Idlib.

The ministry expressed condolences to the martyr's family, the Turkish Armed Forces and Turkish nation, wishing a swift recovery for the injured.

This March, Ankara and Moscow agreed on a protocol urging parties to "cease all military actions along the line of contact in the Idlib de-escalation area."

Idlib falls within a de-escalation zone laid out in a deal between Turkey and Russia in late 2018. The Syrian regime and its allies, however, have consistently broken the terms of cease-fire, launching frequent attacks inside the zone.

The de-escalation zone is currently home to 4 million civilians, including hundreds of thousands displaced in recent years by regime forces throughout the war-weary country.

Turkey has worked to protect the local civilian population, as well as rid the wider region of terrorist elements.

* Writing by Jeyhun Aliyev