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Turkey vows to continue campaign against Islamic State militants Turkey vows to continue campaign against Islamic State militants
(about 4 hours later)
Turkey's government has vowed to continue targeting Islamic State (IS) militants, after launching air strikes against their positions in Syria. Turkey has vowed to keep up a crackdown on Islamic State (IS) militants, after launching its first air strikes against their positions in Syria.
Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the air strikes, the first by Turkey on IS, "completely destroyed" their targets. Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the strikes were part of a broad "process".
Turkish forces and IS fighters traded fire on Thursday near the Syrian border. One Turkish soldier was killed. Turkey arrested IS suspects on Friday. It has also said it would let the US use a key airbase to attack IS targets.
And early on Friday, Turkish police launched raids against IS and Kurdish militants, arresting 297 people. A suspected IS bombing killed 32 people in the Turkish town of Suruc this week. IS fighters have since clashed with Turkish troops at the Syrian border.
The arrests come after the PKK's military wing said it killed two Turkish police officers on Wednesday. The group claims the men collaborated with IS in the bombing of a Kurdish activists' group on Monday that killed 32 people. One Turkish soldier was killed in the exchange of fire at a border post near the Turkish town of Kilis on Thursday.
In Istanbul, more than 5,000 officers helped search 140 properties. The Turkish government has faced criticism at home and abroad for not doing enough against IS, despite being part of the international coalition fighting it.
The state-run Anadolu news agency said there were also arrests in the cities of Ankara and Izmir and in Sanliurfa province, close to the Syrian border. On Friday, Turkish F-16 jets, based in Diyarbakir, bombed three IS targets in Syria, Turkish officials said. Smart bombs struck command centres and a gathering point for IS supporters, an official told the Associated Press news agency.
Members of the youth wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and of a far-left group, the Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Party Front (DHKP-C), were also detained. The agency quotes the private Dogan news agency as saying that up to 35 militants were killed in one of the strikes. However, the London-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the number of dead was not that high.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the operations against militants would continue. This marks the first time Turkey has confirmed air strikes against targets in Syria since IS began its advance through Iraq and Syria in 2013.
Separately, Turkey said that F-16 jets had hit three IS targets in Syria. Officials did not confirm the bombing targets but Turkish state TV said that the jets had attacked the border village of Havar, next to the Turkish town of Kilis - and thus had not violated Syrian air space.
It is the first time Turkey has confirmed air strikes against targets in Syria since IS began its advance through Iraq and Syria in 2013.
Turkish state TV said that the jets had not violated Syrian air space as they attacked the border village of Havar, next to the Turkish town of Kilis.
"This is a process," Mr Davutoglu said. "It is not limited to one day or to one region. The slightest movement threatening Turkey will be retaliated against in the strongest way possible.""This is a process," Mr Davutoglu said. "It is not limited to one day or to one region. The slightest movement threatening Turkey will be retaliated against in the strongest way possible."
Mr Davutoglu said Turkey was prepared to send troops across the border into Syria "if there was such a need". He said Turkey was prepared to send troops across the border into Syria "if there was such a need".
The US is expected to step up bombing raids against IS after reaching an agreement with Turkey to use the Incirlik airbase.
The agreement was finalised in a phone call between President Barack Obama and Mr Erdogan on Wednesday.
Analysis - Jonathan Marcus, BBC diplomatic and defence correspondentAnalysis - Jonathan Marcus, BBC diplomatic and defence correspondent
Turkey appears to have dropped its studied ambivalence towards IS and has weighed in with air strikes and the shelling of IS targets in Syria, as well as a wave of arrests of IS sympathisers at home. Turkey appears to have dropped its studied ambivalence towards IS and has weighed in with air strikes and the shelling of IS targets in Syria, as well as a wave of arrests of alleged IS sympathisers at home.
More important still could be the decision by Ankara to allow US warplanes to strike IS targets from its base in Incirlik.More important still could be the decision by Ankara to allow US warplanes to strike IS targets from its base in Incirlik.
This provides vital airfields much closer to IS targets in Syria and could enable a step-change in the US air campaign.This provides vital airfields much closer to IS targets in Syria and could enable a step-change in the US air campaign.
For too long, many in the West have argued, Turkey prioritised the removal of the Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and its own turbulent relations with the Kurds rather than seeking the demise of IS.For too long, many in the West have argued, Turkey prioritised the removal of the Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad and its own turbulent relations with the Kurds rather than seeking the demise of IS.
But Islamic State may well have over-played its hand, demonstrating that it represents a clear security threat to Turkey which Ankara can no longer ignore.But Islamic State may well have over-played its hand, demonstrating that it represents a clear security threat to Turkey which Ankara can no longer ignore.
The arrests and air strikes by Turkish authorities come after a bloody few days on their side of the Syrian border. Also on Friday, Turkish police arrested 297 people in raids targeting the alleged supporters of several militant groups, including IS.
The Turkish government has faced criticism at home and abroad for not doing enough against IS, despite being part of the international coalition fighting it. Members of the youth wing of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and of a far-left group, the Marxist Revolutionary People's Liberation Party Front (DHKP-C), were also detained.
The arrests come after the PKK's military wing said it killed two Turkish police officers on Wednesday. The group claims the men collaborated with IS in the bombing in Suruc, targeting left-wing activists.
In Istanbul, more than 5,000 officers helped search 140 properties.
The state-run Anadolu news agency said there were also arrests in the cities of Ankara and Izmir and in Sanliurfa province, close to the Syrian border.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said he was "determined to stop forces from other countries" interfering in Turkey, referring to the latest arrests.
The agreement to let the US use the Incirlik airbase, following months of negotiations, was finalised in a phone call between President Barack Obama and Mr Erdogan this week.
It could allow the US to step up air strikes against IS, as it is closer to northern Syria and Iraq than the Gulf, which currently serves as a launch-pad for bombing missions.
Mr Erdogan said the US-led coalition against IS would be allowed to use the base "within a certain framework" - but did not specify what this would be.
A return to IncirlikA return to Incirlik
The US military is more than familiar with the southern Turkish base, and its recent history is tied closely with recent US military operations.The US military is more than familiar with the southern Turkish base, and its recent history is tied closely with recent US military operations.
What is your reaction to the Syrian air strikes and the raids in Turkey? Are you nearby? You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your story.What is your reaction to the Syrian air strikes and the raids in Turkey? Are you nearby? You can email haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk with your story.
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