Turkish Economy Minister, Nihat Zeybekci
A prominent Turkish business association announced on Tuesday that it aimed to open a new branch and a trade center in territories cleared of YPG/PKK and Daesh terrorists in Syria.
The new branch and trade center are aimed at boosting trade and prosperity for people in the region liberated from terrorists by Turkey’s Euphrates Shield and Olive Branch operations, according to the Independent Industrialists’ and Businessmen’s Association (MUSIAD).
Dozens of Syrians approached the Israeli frontier on the Golan Heights on Tuesday in an apparent attempt to seek help or sanctuary from a Russian-backed Syrian army offensive, before turning back after a warning from Israeli forces.Tens of thousands of Syrians have arrived near the frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights in the past month, fleeing a rapidly advancing offensive which has defeated the opposition across a swathe of territory near Jordan and Israel."Go back before something bad happens. If you want us to be able to help you, go back," an Israeli army officer on the Israeli side of a frontier fence told the crowd in Arabic through a megaphone. "Get a move on."Syrian regime barrel bomb attack on school kills 10 civilians in QuneitraThe offensive has triggered the single biggest displacement of the war, with several hundred thousand people uprooted. Both Israel and Jordan have said they will not allow Syrians to cross into their territory.Israel, which seized the Golan in the 1967 Middle East War, has given humanitarian aid to refugees in encampments close to a 1974 Israeli-Syrian disengagement line. Many of the displaced are sheltering within the disengagement zone that is monitored by a U.N. force.The Syrians who approached the frontier fence stopped some 200 metres (yards) away, before an Israeli soldier told them to leave.Syrian civilians approach Israeli frontier fence in Golan Heights"You are on the border of the State of Israel. Go back, we don't want to hurt you," the soldier shouted in Arabic through a loudspeaker at the crowd, live Reuters TV footage showed.The crowd, which included women and children, then walked back slowly towards the refugee encampment. Some stopped mid-way and waved white cloths in the direction of the Israeli frontier.The Russian-backed offensive has advanced swiftly, unopposed by President Bashar al-Assad's foreign adversaries. The United States, which once armed the southern opposition, told them not to expect it to intervene as the attack got underway last month.A witness on the Syrian side of the Golan frontier said the sound of bombardment was drawing ever nearer. The United Nations said last week up to 160,000 Syrians had fled to Quneitra province, some in close proximity to the Golan area.Video: Syrian civilians approach Israeli frontier fence in Golan HeightsGOVERNMENT FORCES CELEBRATEIsrael has threatened a harsh response to any attempt by Syrian forces to deploy in the disengagement zone, complicating the government offensive as it draws closer to the frontier.Israel does not want its enemies Iran and Hezbollah, both allies of Assad, to move forces near its border.Russian President Vladimir Putin, speaking alongside U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday, cited the need to restore the situation along the Golan borders to the state that prevailed before the outbreak of the Syrian war in 2011.At least 14 people, including five children and some women, were killed when Syrian government forces dropped a barrel bomb on the village of Ain al-Tineh 10 km (6 miles) from the Golan frontier, according to UOSSM, a medical aid charity that operates in the area.Ahmad al-Dbis, UOSSM safety and security manager, said another 35 people had been wounded in the attack which he said had hit a school. The casualties had fled to the village from nearby parts of the southwest.Syrian state TV broadcast from a hilltop captured from the opposition on Monday and overlooking the Golan frontier. Government fighters waved rifles and held aloft pictures of Assad as they celebrated on camera from the location, al-Haara hill.
Israel warns Syrians away from frontier as Assad closes in
"We will open a Syrian branch as soon as possible as we intend to establish a bridge between businessmen in Syria and Turkey," said Ibrahim Uyar, the chairman of the foreign organizational development commission at MUSIAD.
Uyar said the new branch would be opened after negotiations with the chamber of commerce and businesses in the region.
"Thanks to the trade center and the new office, our Syrian brothers will develop their trade relations, and through this trade the trust and stability will come again to the region," he added.
The Turkish army on Tuesday conducted its 15th round of patrols in the northern Syrian city of Manbij as part of a deal with the U.S. to rid the area of terror group YPG/PKK. In a message posted on its official Twitter account, the Turkish General Staff said forces of both countries conducted separate coordinated patrols in the area between the Operation Euphrates Shield region and Manbij.The first patrols by Turkish and U.S. troops in the region began on June 18.Video: Joint Turkey-US patrol forces enter Syria's ManbijThe Manbij deal between Turkey and the U.S. focuses on the withdrawal of the PKK-affiliated YPG terror group from the city in order to stabilize the region.In its more than 30-year terror campaign against Turkey, the PKK has taken some 40,000 lives, including those of women and children. The YPG/PKK is its Syrian branch.Should the Manbij model prove a success, Turkey will push for a similar arrangement in eastern Syria.Turkey has said the presence of terror forces near its border constitutes a threat and has launched military operations and other efforts to rid the region of terrorists.PKK/YPG to deliver control of Syria’s major dams to Assad Regime
Turkish army conducts 15th round of patrols in Manbij
Uyar also said activities in the region would significantly contribute to the Turkish economy, especially as people displaced from the region return home and the normalization process can begin.
He emphasized that MUSIAD's priorities were to address the basic needs in food and textiles, and provide opportunities in the field of construction materials later on.
"MUSIAD has a very important, restorative and commercial position in terms of rehabilitation of this region," said Omer Faruk Akbal, the chairman of the domestic organizational development commission in MUSIAD.
Since the liberation of the region from terrorists, Turkey has been supporting the normalization of the territory by supporting healthcare, education, and safety services.