Eurasia Press & News
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reassured the Turkish troops guarding Süleyman Şah tomb in northern Syria that the military will move immediately to defend them when needed.
Erdoğan’s pledge, made in a message wishing the soldiers a happy Eid al-Adha, came a day after a similar statement released by the top commander of the Turkish military.
“I would like to confirm that you are not alone and that the Turkish nation is by your side,” he said in the message. “I would also like you to know that, when needed, the Turkish Armed Forces will be by your side without delay.”
The tomb, guarded by a few dozen Turkish soldiers, is considered Turkish territory under a 1921 Franco-Turkish agreement. There have been reports lately that militants of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) have encircled the tomb, the burial place of the grandfather of Osman I, the founder of the Ottoman Empire.
“Rest assured that the Turkish Armed Forces will come to your side the moment we receive any word about you,” Chief of General Staff Gen. Necdet Özel said in his message on Thursday.
