The Syrian army has reportedly stepped up its offensive in the war-torn-country’s rebel-held Idlib-province, a northwestern district that has harbored Islamist fugitives and their families, marking the territory for the Assad regime as vital component in winning the war. The offensive by Assad’s military, however, has angered Turkey, which received assurances by both Russia and Iran that Idlib, among other designated-zones in Syria, would remain untouched as part of a de-confliction accord signed by Moscow, Tehran and Ankara. Furthermore, Turkey – which already hosts some 3 million refugees from the six-year-old conflict- fear a further influx across its border from Idlib province, which borders southern Turkey. In a press conference in Ankara, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said, “It (attacks on Idlib) leads to nothing but the breaking down Syria’s peace process. That’s why it has to become compulsory, especially for Russia and Iran, to issue more warnings to the Syrian regime,” the Turkish Prime Minister warned, while voicing concern of a possible influx of new refugees from Idlib province as a result of the Syrian offensive.
