Turkey: 365,000 refugees returned to safe zone in Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed the return of 365,000 Syrians to homes in the “safe zones” setup by his forces in northern Syria.

In a speech delivered in Ankara yesterday, Erdogan said that Turkey’s military operations against armed factions in Syria had been successful and led to securing an area of ​​more than 8,100 square kilometres.

Erdogan stressed that Turkey would make the return of more Syrian refugees possible either by organising an international donors meeting or through some model projects.

The Turkish president pointed out that attempts to destabilise his country, through conducting economic attacks on it, have failed and the Turkish economy has thwarted all the conspiracies aiming to destroy it.

On 9 October, the Turkish army launched Operation Peace Spring east of the Euphrates River in northern Syria, to establish a safe zone for the return of Syrian refugees to their country. The operation was suspended on 17 October after Ankara and Washington reached an agreement to withdraw fighters from the region, and another accord with Russia in the city of Sochi on 22 October.

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