What's the holdup in Turkey's battle for al-Bab?
Turkey's president must be mulling over many factors influencing the stalled action in Syria.
Turkey is in the fifth month of its Operation Euphrates Shield in northern Syria. The troops have completed the first two phases of the operation, which entailed clearing the Islamic State (IS) out of Jarablus and creating an IS-free zone in the 37-mile (60-kilometer) border stretch between al-Rai and Jarablus.
In those two phases, IS was ousted from 22 villages and towns between Azaz and Jarablus. The Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Turkish army now control a territory there of 722 square miles (1,870 square kilometers). Military experts agree that these phases, carried out by Turkish special forces and FSA elements, were militarily successful.
The third phase of the operation, aimed at capturing al-Bab, was launched at the beginning of December. In the second week, attacking forces reached the suburbs of the town from the west and north. By reinforcing Turkish forces operating around al-Bab with new commando battalions and armored units, the number of Turkish army elements in the al-Bab region reached the level of FSA forces. The operation's momentum is now being determined not by the FSA, but by the Turkish army.
Despite all efforts, Turkish army advances in the operation, which took the lives of 47 Turkish soldiers, have stalled at Aqil Hill west of al-Bab.
