Shelling by regime’s loyal gunmen targets the route of the Turkish column headed to take position in the southern countryside of Aleppo

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights learned that the pro-regime gunmen of Arab and Asian nationalities targeted the route of the Turkish column that entered the Syrian territory and headed towards the southern countryside of Aleppo, where this column which entered on the 29^th of January 2018 is one of the largest columns, and the sources said that this column was heading towards al-Eis area to hold its control in the area and to establish position points there, and the ground shelling on the rout of the column and on the vicinity of the area of its presence led to the retreat of the Turkish military vehicles and their accompanying forces to al-Qanater area in the western countryside of Aleppo.

The area of the southern countryside of Aleppo, which is considered the area of operations of the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and the non-Syrians loyal to the regime, has witnessed during the past few days the entry of the Turkish reconnaissance force to the area and roaming in the vicinity of the southern countryside of Aleppo, followed by shelling by the regime forces on those areas, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 24^th of January 2018 that a column of the Turkish forces entered the Syrian territory through Kafrluseen area on the Syrian – Turkish border, and the intersected sources confirmed to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights that this column which carrying officers accompany a Turkish reconnaissance force, headed to Al-Eis area at a distance of about 29 km to the east of Abu Al-Duhur Military Airbase, and at a distance of hundreds of meters away from the positions of the regime forces in the southern countryside of Aleppo, in which the reconnaissance force walked around the area and surveyed the field situations in it, then the column withdrew to the Syrian border with Turkey followed by shelling by the Turkish forces on Al-Eis area in the southern countryside of Aleppo.

And the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights published on the 12th of January 2018, that a Turkish reconnaissance force was presented in Hayyan area in the northern countryside of Aleppo, where the reconnaissance force is there to monitor the area and also for the possibility of holding addition points to the Turkish forces in Aleppo Province, after weeks of fixing points of it in the vicinity of Afrin in the northwestern countryside of Aleppo and in the western countryside of Aleppo, while the entry of this reconnaissance force comes as a part of the continuation of the entry of the military columns of the Turkish forces to the western countryside of Aleppo and Idlib countryside, in which the first group of them entered on the 13th of October 2017, after Turkish reconnaissance forces had started to enter Idlib and Aleppo countryside, and wandered in the area protected by Hayyaat Tahrir al-Sham, after that several columns of the Turkish forces have entered the Syrian territory, and they included military and engineering vehicles. Reliable sources told the Syrian Observatory then that these vehicles crossed to Sheikh Aqil area which is controlled by fighters of Nour al-Din al-Zenki Movement at the outskirts of Afrin area.