Syrian shell strikes Turkish border province

ISTANBUL

AA photo





Syrian shelling hit a rural area in a Turkish border province Oct. 6, for the fourth time since Oct. 5, daily Hürriyet reported.A shell fired by the Syrian army at opposition forces fell in the eastern province of Hatay, about 800 meters away from the village of Aşağıpullayazı Village in the Yayladğı district, at about 3:00 p.m. No casualties were reported.The Turkish army early today returned fire after a new round of shelling from Syria hit the border province of Hatay, AFP reported.No casualties were reported, Anatolian news agency said.The incident happened today in the small Turkish village of Guvecci, near the border with Syria, when a mortar fell in a rural area. It came from across the border in Syria in a region where fighting has taken place between rebels and the Syrian army, Anatolia said.The latest exchange came three days after Syrian shelling killed five Turkish nationals in another border town, Akcakale, triggering retaliatory fire and ratcheting up the tense relations between the neighbours.Meanwhile, Turkey again returned fire yesterday after another Syrian shell slammed into its territory close to the border, said local authorities quoted by Anatolia news agency.The Syrian projectile hit 50 metres from the frontier in a rural area near Turkey's Yayladagi town in Hatay province, triggering immediate response fire from Turkish forces, said Hatay governor Celalettin Lekesiz.There were no injuries in Turkey, said Lekesiz.The fresh exchange came two days after Syrian shelling killed five Turkish nationals in another border town, Akcakale, triggering retaliatory fire and plunging tense relations between the neighbours into a new crisis.Turkey reacted furiously, and Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan again warned Syria on Friday that it would pay "a big price" for further attacks.The warning came a day after his government obtained a one-year mandate from parliament authorising military raids into Syria if necessary.Erdogan again said Turkey was not interested in war but would not hesitate to retaliate against any attack and violation of its national security.Wednesday's incident marked the first time Syrian shells killed Turkish nationals since the uprising against the regime in Damascus began in March 2011.Turkey had ceased fire on early Thursday, after its sporadic shelling pounded unspecified targets in Syria throughout Wednesday night.Another shell landed in Hatay Thursday evening, which also led Turkey to briefly return fire, Lekesiznoted.