Turkish tanks roll into Syria, opening new line of attack

[MowCowWhoHow III]

Source: Reuters

Turkey and its rebel allies opened a new line of attack in northern Syria on Saturday, as Turkish tanks rolled across the border and Syrian fighters swept in from the west to take villages held by Islamic State.

The incursion was launched by Turkey from Kilis province - an area frequently targeted by Islamic State rockets - and coincided with a separate push by the Turkish-backed Syrian rebels, who seized several villages further to the east.

By supporting the rebels, mainly Arabs and Turkmen fighting under the loose banner of the Free Syrian Army, Turkey is hoping to drive out Islamic State militants and check the advance of U.S.-backed Syrian Kurdish fighters.

The rebels last week took the frontier town of Jarablus with Turkish support. The operation, called Euphrates Shield, is Ankara's first full-scale Syrian incursion since the start of the five-year-old war.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-idUSKCN1190GT?utm_campaign=trueAnthem:+Trending+Content&utm_content=57cb490e04d30147eed3008b&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=twitter

[iandhr]

1. I am sure they are going to do nothing...

... about ISIL and they will only attack the Kurds.

[Cayenne]

7. I should be getting more obvious now

ISIS (along with FSA, al Nusra) gets its sustenance from Turkey. Everybody but Americans knows this it seems. If you don't think so please explain how they get the copious ammunition it takes to fight a war.

[Aristus]

2. American-made M-60's.

For all of the M-60's heavily criticized 'unsuitabilty' for tank-to-tank warfare, it sure has seen a lot of use on the frontlines.

Critics of the tank ( and I'm not its biggest fan, either) mention its tall silhouette, massive turret, outdated 105mm rifled gun, and its deafening diesel engine, as potential pitfalls against the smaller, more heavily armed Russian-made tanks that were expected to be its most likely opponents.

But the Israelis made spectacular use of it in the Yom Kippur War. Turkey seems to be in no hurry to update its fleet, and Egypt only recently replaced the 55 year-old tank with the more recent, but still aging, M-1 Abrams.

[ozone82]

5. They Have....

658 M60A3TTS, 104 M60A1 RISE, 170 M60Ts, as well as 354 Leopard 2A4s.

[PersonNumber503602]

3. Ahhh, so I wonder how it will play out between these folks and the Kurds when ISIS is less relevant.

[ozone82]

6. As Allways...

The Kurds will suffer, probably more than the Sultan's pals, ISIS.

[yallerdawg]

4. It is very good to see a major Mid East powerhouse...

taking on ISIL.

ISIL's terrorist attacks on Turkish civilians and NATO allies have roused a slumbering giant.