Erdogan announces plans to open Turkish consulate in Aleppo

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stands before a picture of the founder and first president of the Turkish Republic Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, during his meeting with the visitig US Secretary of State at Ankara Esenboga Airport on December 12, 2024. (File/AFP)
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Updated 25 December 2024
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Erdogan announces plans to open Turkish consulate in Aleppo

  • Erdogan also issued a stern warning to Kurdish militants in Syria

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Wednesday that Turkiye will soon open a consulate in Syria's Aleppo.

Erdogan also issued a stern warning to Kurdish militants in Syria, stating they must either "lay down their weapons or be buried in Syrian lands with their weapons."

The remarks underscore Turkiye's firm stance on combating Kurdish groups it views as a threat to its national security.


Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

Updated 23 January 2026
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Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

  • Prison holds detainees linked to Daesh, and witnessed ⁠clashes in its vicinity between advancing Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters

Syria’s Interior Ministry said on Friday it had taken over Al-Aktan prison in the city of Raqqa ​in northeastern Syria, a facility that was formerly under the control of Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).

The prison has been holding detainees linked to the militant group Daesh, and witnessed clashes in its vicinity this week between advancing Syrian government forces and the SDF.

It ‌was not ‌immediately clear how many ‌Daesh ⁠detainees ​remain in Al-Aktan ‌prison as the US military has started transferring up to 7,000 prisoners linked to the militant Islamist group from Syrian jails to neighboring Iraq. US officials say the detainees are citizens of many countries, including in Europe.

“Specialized teams were ⁠formed from the counter-terrorism department and other relevant authorities to ‌take over the tasks of guarding ‍and securing the prison ‍and controlling the security situation inside it,” ‍the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Under a sweeping integration deal agreed on Sunday, responsibility for prisons housing Daesh detainees was meant to be transferred to ​the Syrian government.

The SDF said on Monday it was battling Syrian government forces near ⁠Al-Aktan and that the seizure of the prison by the government forces “could have serious security repercussions that threaten stability and pave the way for a return to chaos and terrorism.”

The US transfer of Daesh prisoners follows the rapid collapse of Kurdish-led forces in northeast Syria. Concerns over prison security intensified after the escape on Tuesday of roughly 200 low-level Daesh fighters from Syria’s ‌Shaddadi prison. Syrian government forces later recaptured many of them.