Special prayers to be offered for Turkish military

By Sorwar Alam

ANKARA

Special prayer sessions will be held in 90,000 mosques across Turkey for the success of Turkish military operation in Syria’s Afrin region, according to the country’s top religious body.

In a statement on Saturday, the Turkish Religious Affairs said the prayer sessions will be performed after the Isha prayer (night prayer) on Saturday and the Fajr prayer (early morning prayer) on Sunday.

Ali Erbas, head of the body, sent a message to all religious officials across the country to hold the special prayers for the victory of Turkish military, the statement read.

Turkey has launched a military campaign in Afrin region, northwestern Syria, to eliminate the PKK, PYD, YPG and Daesh terrorist organizations, and to save civilians in the region from the terrorists’ oppression and cruelty.

Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced the launch of Afrin operation against the terrorist groups.

The army also confirmed that it launched “Operation Olive Branch” on Saturday at 5.00 p.m. (1400GMT).

The operation is carried out under the framework of Turkey’s rights based on international law, UN Security Council’s decisions and self-defense right under UN charter, said the military.

The statement said the operation will also take sensitivity into account and no civilian/innocent person would be harmed.