Burcu Arik
15 February 2016•Update: 15 February 2016
ISTANBUL
Anadolu Agency does not verify these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
Dailies on Monday mainly dedicated their front pages to the Turkish shelling of PYD positions near the town of Azaz in northern Syria.
The shelling has come in retaliation under Turkish military rules of engagement.
The PYD is the Syrian affiliate of the terrorist PKK organization which has targeted security forces as well as civilians in Turkey since 1984.
"Fifty targets in 17 hours" was HURRIYET's headline, covering a photo of Turkish army howitzers stationed at a military base in the border province of Kilis in southeastern Turkey.
According to the daily, the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) bombed 50 targets in response to two separate attacks from PYD and Bashar al-Assad forces on Turkish military bases in the border province of Hatay.
Ankara demanded the group withdraw from Azaz and the surrounding area but PYD head Salih Muslim has said that they rejected Ankara’s demands, the daily claimed.
The shelling was first reported Saturday night when Turkey’s prime minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, said that the army returned artillery fire after being attacked from PYD based around Azaz.
Azaz in Aleppo province has been the scene of recent heavy fighting and the PYD’s armed wing, the YPG, which has advanced to Azaz -- just six kilometers (four miles) from the Turkish border.
YENI SAFAK ran with the headline: "No step back" regarding Ankara's response to the YPG’s cross-border activities.
According to the daily, Syrian opposition forces alleged that the Turkish shelling killed at least 29 YPG militants.
"We will not allow PYD," was MILLIYET's headline, quoting Davutoglu speaking during a news conference in Erzincan, northeast Turkey.
"We will take every necessary step to ensure an environment that guarantees Turkey’s security, an environment without Daesh, the Syrian regime or the PYD," Davutoglu said.
According to Davutoglu, YPG forces did not cross the river line but instead tried to invade Azaz by crossing into Afrin’s east, which has been under Kurdish control.
"The YPG will remain within their lines during the clashes," Davutoglu said.
In other news, Turkish newspapers also covered Davutoglu's visit to a cemevi -- an Alevi house of worship -- in Erzincan.
HABERTURK quoted Davutoglu as saying "We will defend this dervish lodge together."
Calling Turkey as a "big dervish lodge," Davutoglu said: "We will stand against anyone who attempts to ruin it."
Alevis constitute the second-largest religious community in Turkey, after Sunni Muslims.
