Turkey preparing partial invasion of Syria

Turkey is preparing a partial invasion and ground operation in the border region of Syria in a bid to “clean” it of ISIS positions, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday, adding that such a move was a response to several attacks on the Turkish border city of Kilis, Telesur reported.

"We are making all the necessary preparations to clean the other side of the border because of the problems in Kilis," Erdogan said, after months of pushing for a ground operation in neighboring Syria. Erdogan confirmed that the operation will be unilateral, saying that Ankara is tired of waiting for its Western allies to take action.

“While our citizens are being martyred every day by rockets fired from the other side, what will we wait for from the allies,” Erdogan said at an event called “Domestic and National Will in Turkish Political History.”

“We haven’t yet been able to receive the support that we desire from allies ... We will pull ourselves up by our bootstraps," he added.

Erdogan further accused the U.S.-led coalition of abandoning Turkey. Around two dozen people have been killed in Kilis by ISIS group rocket fire since January, Telesur continued.