The Turkish army has shelled Islamic State targets in the north of Syria from within Turkish territory. The army also struck targets belonging to Kurdish fighters.

A Turkish official said Islamic State was the prime target and not Kurdish fighters. The Turkish military has launched continuous artillery strikes against ISIL and Kurdish positions in northern Syria, hitting targets around 20 times “to open a corridor for an operation.”

Ankara has frequently voiced concerns over Kurdish militant activity along the Turkish border and has been rigid in its stance of preventing any de facto Kurdish state from forming in northern Syria.