Aug 10, 2018

ALEPPO, Syria — In cooperation with the local councils of the Euphrates Shield area in Aleppo, the Turkish government is seeking to establish a road network to connect the main cities of the area and link them with the southern Turkish provinces of Gaziantep and Kilis, which are home to hundreds of thousands of Syrian refugees.

While the cost is yet to be revealed, the project will be carried out in cooperation between the local councils of the Euphrates Shield area and the Turkish government. Syrian engineers and technicians will be employed by the Turkish government to work with Turkish engineers.

Alaa Hamad, the director of the information office at al-Rai border crossing, told Al-Monitor, “The construction of the freeway to the east of al-Rai city was completed July 27. The freeway, whose construction required around three months, extends from al-Rai crossing on the border with Turkey to al-Bab road and stretches over 6 kilometers [3.7 miles]. It is a two-lane freeway established with the support of the Turkish government.”

The local council in the city of al-Rai had previously received support from the Turkish government to pave and repair the roads linking the city with the surrounding villages and towns. According to officials from the local councils of the Euphrates Shield area, Turkish companies are to build new freeways to link al-Rai and its border crossing with other cities in the Euphrates Shield area such as al-Bab, Azaz and Jarablus.

In mid-June, the local council of the city of Azaz established a road linking the eastern side of the city to the Bab al-Salameh border crossing with the support of the Turkish government. The two-lane freeway extends about 5 kilometers (3 miles) and has freed drivers from needing to travel through the center of Azaz, where traffic congestion is most intense.