Ankara confirms 2 Turkish soldiers killed in Syria by Russian backed regime forces

The Turkey's Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that two Turkish soldiers were killed and six wounded in an attack by the Bashar Assad regime in northwestern Syria's Idlib. Sabah reportd
According to the defense statement, immediately after the Syrian forces opened fire, Turkish forces retaliated and continued to strike targets.

"We wish God's mercy on our martyrs and condolences to their families. We also share our condolences with the entire Turkish nation and wish a quick recovery for our wounded personnel," it said.

The incident brought the death toll among Turkish soldiers to 59, including one on Tuesday, in Operation Spring Shield, which began last month.

Turkish forces neutralized 3,136 regime elements in Syria since the start of the operation in the northwestern Idlib region, the Defense Ministry said in a separate statement Wednesday.

Meanwhile, analysts have indicated Turkish propaganda and inflation both in number of Syrian targets and those claimed to have been killed by Erdogan forces in Idlib governorate of Syria.

Russia has consistently laid the blame for the escalation in Syria on Ankara, ahead of the summit between Russian President Putin and Turkish leader Erdogan in Moscow. Russian officials have said they hold Turkey responsible for the collapse of a cease-fire agreement reached in Sochi, Russia in 2018. 

They say Ankara has failed to honor the deal and rein in militants who continued attacking Syrian and Russian targets.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has last month sent thousands of troops and reinforcements into the area to support Syrian insurgents in Idlib.

However Russian-backed Syrian government forces in their offensives to retake the Idlib province remain unstoppable.

Idlib area is the last rebel stronghold after nine years of war in Syria.