Syrian army says it will conduct ops near Aleppo against ISIL

The Syrian army signaled on Feb. 2 that it would press on with operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) northeast of Aleppo, near al-Bab, where Turkish forces along with Ankara-backed Syrian rebels have been clashing with the jihadists since December 2016.

Syrian government forces have rapidly driven ISIL back in the last two weeks, advancing to within 6 kilometers (4 miles) of the northern Syrian city of al-Bab that the jihadists are fighting to hold onto. 

The army's gains risk sparking a confrontation with Turkey, which has sent tanks and warplanes across the border to support Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters who are trying to seize al-Bab in a separate offensive called the Euphrates Shield operation. 

Turkey's offensive, launched last year, aims to drive both ISIL and Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) fighters away from its borders, as Ankara sees both groups as terrorist organizations and security threats. 

Syria's military general command said government forces and their allies had recaptured more than 30 towns and villages from ISIL, and a 16 km (10 mile) stretch of the highway that links Aleppo to al-Bab to the northeast. 

"This achievement widens the secured areas around Aleppo city and is the starting point for [further] operations against Daesh [ISIL]," a military spokesman said in a statement broadcast on state TV, according to Reuters. 

The military "confirms its commitment to ... protecting civilians and maintaining the unity of the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic," the statement added.

Syrian army's move comes a few months after Syrian forces backed by Russia and Iran took control of the Aleppo city center. 

51 ISIL militants ...