Planned deployment and distribution of troops in Idlib de-escalation zone in northwestern Syria is ongoing, and there are no withdrawals of troops from the region, the Turkish Defense Ministry announced on Friday.
To stop the bloodshed and humanitarian crisis, ensure security of troops and safe return of civilians to their homes, all decisions taken under the Moscow ceasefire deal are being implemented carefully, read a ministry statement.
The Turkish military is continuing the planned deployment of troops in the Idlib de-escalation zone in line with the March 6 ceasefire, it said, refuting reports about the withdrawal of forces.
Following their meeting in Moscow on March 5, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a ceasefire in Idlib starting March 6. In a joint statement, they said that a secure corridor would stretch 6 km to the north and 6 km south of the Aleppo-Latakia M4 highway, and they also agreed to hold joint patrols there.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that since Moscow's ceasefire deal, thousands of soldiers and 1,400 military vehicles entered Syrian territories.
From February 2 to date, Observatory activists monitored the entry of more than 4,800 Turkish trucks and military vehicles, including tanks, personnel carriers, armored vehicles, mobile bulletproof guard booths and military radars. Meanwhile, the number of Turkish soldiers who were deployed during the same period in Idlib and Aleppo exceeded 9,650.
This followed the Turkish defense ministry announcing Thursday that a rocket attack by "radical groups" killed two Turkish soldiers and injured one more in Idlib, prompting Turkish retaliatory fire.
The development took place in the countryside of Idlib along the M4 highway during a surveillance mission by Turkish forces.
Meanwhile, some Idlib residents placed sand barriers on the M4 highway to express their rejection of Turkish-Russian agreements.
