Turkish Special Forces enter Syria

Turkey has stepped up retaliation efforts after the Daesh terrorist organization intensified attacks targeting Turkey, as a group of 15-20 Turkish Special Forces entered Syria for reconnaissance and preparation for Turkey's retaliation.

The operation started at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday and lasted four hours.

The Turkish military aims to end Daesh attacks and declare a safe zone in the south of Turkey's Kilis province, according to anonymous sources who spoke to Yeni Şafak daily.

The Turkish military killed 55 Daesh terrorists by mortar shelling in the north of the Syrian city of Aleppo on Saturday evening, according to military sources. The shelling also took out three vehicles and three rocket installations, the military sources added.

Turkey has been struggling against terrorist organizations, particularly Daesh, in an effort to neutralize threats that specifically target Turkey.

Turkey intensified efforts after the town of Kilis was repeatedly targeted by Daesh rockets, and at least 20 people have been killed since Jan. 1.

About 2,000 terrorists have been killed in Syria and Iraq since August 2015, with as many as 470,000 people killed since the beginning of the five-year-long civil war in Syria.

Since then, 6.5 million Syrians have been internally displaced, while 5 million were forced to emigrate.