Monday 11 May 2015

Turkish PM Visits of Suleyman Shah Tomb in Syria

Source

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu travelled into Syria on Sunday to visit a relocated tomb of of Suleyman Shah inside the country, his office said.

The trip, which was not announced in advance, is the first such visit by a Turkish political leader to the tomb of Suleyman Shah, grandfather of the Ottoman empire's founder Osman I, just 200 meters (650 feet) from the Turkish border inside Syrian territory.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu

Davutoglu visited Turkish troops who are permanently stationed at the tomb, which now lies in the settlement of Eshme and is easily visible from Turkish territory, his office said.

In February, hundreds of Turkish soldiers staged an unprecedented incursion deep inside Syrian territory to move the tomb from its previous location.

The tomb complex, which is considered sovereign Turkish territory, had been located some 37 kilometers (23 miles) inside Syrian territory.

But the government ordered the tomb, which has a permanent honor guard of Turkish troops, to be moved due to security concerns as it was located in territory controlled by the Takfiri group ISIL.

Army chief of staff Necdet Ozel, flanked by commanders from land and air forces, visited the tomb in March.

The tomb of Suleyman Shah, who is said to have died in 1236, is considered Turkish territory under the 1921 Treaty of Ankara between the Turkish authorities and France, which then controlled French-mandated Syria.