Turkey has strongly dismissed claims that it would hand over the Suleyman Shah Tomb - a sovereign plot of land belonging to Turkey in Syria - to the Islamic State (IS), in return for the release of 49 Turkish consulate staff kidnapped in Iraq's Mosul since June said a statement from the Turkish Foreign Ministry on Thursday.
Situated in Aleppo, the tomb is the burial place of the grandfather of Osman I, the founder of the Ottoman Empire.
"The groundless claims regarding the abduction of Turkey's Mosul consulate staff are an example of irresponsibility," read a statement by the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
The statement came after the daily newspaper Taraf claimed that IS had asked Turkey to pull back its troops guarding the tomb in return for the release of the captives.
The ministry said that the abuse of issues concerning national security and safety of Turkish citizens held hostage in Iraq was unacceptable and it can not be regarded as freedom of press.
Ankara also warned media organs to act in accordance with journalism ethics and to avoid groundless, speculative and irresponsible publishing on such a sensitive issue.
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