Turkish forces began on Sunday setting up a military base on the Tal Abyad-Raqqa highway, opposite Sakhrat silos in East Euphrates.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the Turkish forces also removed a part of the border wall facing Abduki village on Saturday and brought in new excavators into Syrian territories.
Meanwhile, Syrian opposition sources revealed a new Turkish plan to merge Syrian armed factions into a single army operating under its control.
Ankara is getting several fighters from different factions in Idlib to its military bases with an aim to forming an army including factions from the so-called Syrian National Army (SNA) and the National Liberation Front (NLF), media outlets quoted the sources as saying.
After restructuring the military, Turkey plans to dissolve Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and incorporate it into the new army, they said.
“Turkey plans to control the entire area in collaboration with a unified army … Ankara does not plan to withdraw from Idlib and other border areas where it established dozens of observation posts,” the sources explained.
Turkish forces have set up a new military post in the de-escalation zone after troops were stationed in the Bsames village in the Jabal al-Zawiya in the southern countryside of Idlib.
Accordingly, the number of Turkish posts in the de-escalation zone rose to 59.
Ankara keeps sending more military reinforcement to northwest Syria, despite previously announcing a halt in such moves in light of the measures taken to face the COVID-19 disease.
On Sunday, a Turkish military convoy including more than 30 vehicles crossed into Syrian territory via Kafr Lusin crossing on the Iskenderun border.
In Afrin, the Syrian Observatory reported that fighting erupted in the Turkish-controlled city of Afrin between a group of “Al-Hamzah Division” and members of the “23rd Division.”
It said no casualties have been reported while the causes of the battles are yet to be determined.
