Turkish bombers hit ISIL positions in Syria

Turkish fighter jets early this morning hit Islamic State positions in Syria, announced the Turkish prime minister after Turkey announced it would take "every necessary measure" to protect itself from attacks by Islamist or Kurdish guerrillas, reports the Patria News Agency.

Police, with the support of helicopters and special forces, also conducted night raids on more than a hundred Kurdish and ISIL locations in Istanbul, media reported. Around five thousand police officers participated in this operation, Reuters reported.

In addition to Istanbul, police conducted simultaneous raids on Kurdish and ISIL locations in 13 provinces across the country, arresting 251 people so far, according to the Turkish prime minister's office.

F-16 jets that took off early in the morning from the base in Diyarbakır in southeastern Turkey hit two headquarters and another ISIL position, according to a statement from the Turkish prime minister's office.

- Turkish planes did not cross the Syrian border during the operation, said a Turkish official, adding that the attacks took place in the part of Syria opposite the Turkish city of Kilis.

Official Ankara on Thursday allowed the United States to use the Incirlik air base for air strikes against IS, a source from the US armed forces confirmed on Thursday evening.

The New York Times reported that this agreement also includes another base, the one in Diyarbakır, but this representative of the Ministry of Defense, who wished to remain anonymous, did not confirm this, writes dpa.