(NOW English News)- Syrian rebels operating north of Aleppo backed by the reported help of Turkish artillery fire have gained ground against ISIS along a stretch of territory that Ankara aims to turn into a "safe zone."
Since the weekend, rebel factions in the Marea Operations Room regained four villages near the Turkish border that were seized by ISIS in a December offensive.
In their latest victory on Wednesday morning, Free Syrian Army-affiliated groups and Islamist battalions swept into the village of Baghdin following fierce overnight fighting, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Sham Legion announced Wednesday that it had wrested the village of Baghdin on the Syrian-Turkish border from ISIS, in the most recent in a slow series of advances against the group that have reportedly been achieved with Turkish support.
"The Sham Legion announces the total liberation of the village of Baghdin in northern Aleppo countryside from ISIS's Kharijite gangs," the moderate Islamist coalition said in a post on its Twitter feed, using an insulting Islamic term to refer to its adversary.
Over the past four days, insurgent groups in the Marea Operations Room have seized the nearby areas of Qarah Kubri, Qarah Mazraa and Al-Khirbeh, all of which lie to the east of Baghdin.
As the rebels fought against transnational group in the pitched battles in the northern Aleppo border region, reports began to emerge that Turkey was pummeling ISIS with artillery fire.
The ISIS-affiliated A3maq news agency reported Saturday that Turkish forces where shelling the village of Qarah Kubri with heavy artillery, with the outlet reporting further shelling the following day when opposition forces began their offensive inside the town.
Later that Sunday, Islamist battalions marched into Qarah Kubri, while also capturing nearby Al-Khirbeh from ISIS.
A pro-Syrian rebel outlet also reported Turkish artillery support for the rebels in the Marea Operations Room over the weekend.
El-Dorar said on Saturday that the Turkish army was shelling Qarah Kubri, Qarah Mazraa, Al-Ghazal and Al-Rai, among other villages, with not only heavy artillery but also mortar rounds.
"The artillery shelling being witnessed by these areas is the most powerful ever carried out by the Turkish Army, which used to limit [its involvement] to short artillery blasts," the outlet's correspondent reported.
Meanwhile, Turkey's Yeni Safak newspaper touted Ankara's military support for northern Aleppo rebels in their recent offensive against ISIS.
The paper—which is close to the country's ruling Justice
and Development Party (AKP)—said that the rebel operation launched on
Saturday night was advancing "with the support of heavy artillery fire
from Turkey."
Yeni Safak also quoted a rebel commander as saying the opposition groups intend to secure Ankara's desired safe-zone stretching from Aazaz in the west to Jarablus in the east, which would prevent the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) from further expanding along the Turkish border.
In recent weeks, the armed opposition groups in northern Aleppo have engaged in see-saw battles with ISIS in the projected "safe zone" with both sides exchanging control over a series of villages. At the same time, the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces coalition has fought the opposition groups west of Aazaz amid Russian bombardment of the rebel lines.
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