Turkey-backed FSA seizes strategic al-Bab hills

Turkish forces and the Free Syrian Army (FSA) have captured strategically critical hills on the western periphery, the Turkish military said on Wednesday.

“As a result of operations launched last night in order to capture al-Bab, the Turkish Armed Forces and the FSA have taken control of hills with strategic significance," the military reported.

A total of 58 Daesh terrorists were neutralized in air strikes, artillery fire and clashes in the past 24 hours as part of the ongoing Operation Euphrates Shield.

Turkish jets destroyed 254 Daesh targets, and coalition forces conducted seven airstrikes and destroyed 13 targets, in the al-Bab region.

The Turkish military has been surrounding the Daesh-controlled town of al-Bab for weeks as part of the ongoing operation.

Since the operation's launch, 3,719 handmade explosives and 57 mines have been neutralized under controlled conditions.

The Turkish-led operation, aided by the FSA, was launched in late August to improve security, support coalition forces and eliminate the threat of terror along the Turkish-Syrian border.

Operation Euphrates Shield has cleared a total of 227 residential areas and 1,875 square kilometers of land along northern Syria's Azaz-Jarabulus corridor, which runs parallel the Turkish border.