Turkey’s defense ministry says a Turkish soldier was killed in an artillery strike by Syrian regime forces in northwestern Idlib province.
The strike hit a Turkish observation post, marking the first Turkish death in a Syrian regime attack since it launched an offensive to retake Idlib in April.
The ministry said late Thursday that three soldiers were wounded in the attack and have been evacuated from Syria, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Ankara warned Turkey would respond with “heaviest punishment,” the ministry noted.
Turkish troops man 12 observation posts in Idlib as part of a de-escalation agreement struck with Russia and Iran in September 2017.
According to AP, a cease-fire negotiated last year by Turkey, which backs Syrian opposition groups, and Russia, which backs Syrian President Bashar Assad, collapsed amid the government offensive.
