Turkey's energy ministry confirmed that work was under way on a 3km cable from Karakamis in Turkey's Gaziantep province to Jarabulus.

Erdogan said the original residents of Jarabulus and al-Rai have already begun to return from Turkey. If Erdogan can help the anti-ISIS coalition to achieve that, so be it.

Mithat Sancar suggested that the U.S. and Turkey could have reached an informal agreement that while the Turkish military remains in areas close to Jarablus and does not move deeper into the Syrian territory, there will be no direct confrontation with other forces, including the Kurds.

"The attack on Afrin confirms that Turkey's intervention in Syria is mainly aimed at fighting the Kurds".

Ankara-backed rebels seized the town of Jarabulus from IS militants within hours on the first day of the operation and Turkey says jihadists have now been removed from the entire border area.

It is also to prevent the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) from establishing a continuous corridor along Turkey's southern border.

Earlier, it was reported that the first group of Syrian refugees, consisting of 250 people, returned to their motherland September 7.

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Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad s regime were pushed out of Raqa, which lies on the Euphrates River, in 2013, making it the first provincial capital in Syria to fall out of government control.

The Turkish military also said on Thursday that YPG forces fired on a Turkish border post on Wednesday and they returned fire. "There have been many terrorist attacks coming from the Syrian side". However, Turkey had refused.

Yildirim added that the Operation Euphrates Shield will be conducted until the security is provided completely along Turkish borders and the threats against citizens are removed.

Canikli said that a 772 square kilometre (300 square mile) area had been cleared from IS fighters and was now under control of pro-Ankara fighters.

Turkey, however, regards any Kurdish groups in Syria as much as a threat to its existence as ISIS. It has also said it would support any US initiative to strike Islamic State's stronghold of Raqqa, further to the southeast.

It would be an acknowledgement by Washington of Turkey's continuing strategic interest in Syria.