Turkish official briefs US envoy on situation in Idlib, Syria

The Turkish deputy foreign minister briefed the top U.S. diplomat in the country on developments in the wake of Thursday’s attack on Turkish troops by regime forces in Idlib, northwestern Syria.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sedat Onal met U.S. Ambassador to Turkey David Satterfield in Ankara on Friday, according to diplomatic sources.

He shared details of actions taken after 34 Turkish troops were martyred by Assad regime forces, and conveyed Turkey’s expectations from the U.S. and NATO.

Moreover, ambassadors of the UN Security Council's Permanent Members and NATO allies Germany and Belgium were also given a briefing at the Foreign Ministry.

Later on Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump condemned the deadly Syrian regime attack in a telephone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Trump "expressed his condolences and condemned the attack that killed Turkish personnel in Syria", according to White House Spokesman Judd Deere.

"President Trump reaffirmed his support for Turkey’s efforts to de-escalate the situation in northwest Syria and avoid a humanitarian catastrophe," said Deere.

"The two leaders agreed that the Syrian regime, Russia, and the Iranian regime must halt their offensive before more innocent civilians are killed and displaced."

Late Thursday, at least 34 Turkish soldiers were martyred and several more injured in an airstrike by Assad regime forces in Idlib, just across Turkey’s southern border.

The Turkish soldiers are working to protect local civilians under a September 2018 deal with Russia, which prohibits acts of aggression in the Idlib de-escalation zone.

But more than 1,300 civilians have been killed in attacks by Assad and Russian forces in the zone since then, as the cease-fire continues to be violated.

Thursday’s attack was one of a series since January on Turkish troops, with Turkish officials keeping their pledge that such assaults would not go unanswered.

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

More than 1.7 million Syrians have moved near the Turkish border due to intense attacks.

Since the eruption of the Syria conflict in 2011, Turkey has taken in some 3.7 million Syrians who fled their country, making it the world’s top refugee-hosting country.