World Bulletin / News Desk

Turkish armed forces shelled nine terrorist targets in northern Syria as part of Turkey’s Operation Euphrates Shield to clear ISIL out from its southern border region, the military said on Monday.

In a statement, the Turkish General Staff said nine terrorist targets were hit 99 times using the army’s “firtina” (storm) howitzers.

Meanwhile, seven villages -- Qarabah Mamal, Haydar Basha, Humayrah, Umm al-Tadaya, Al-Masannah, Quba al-Dam and Al-Mustafa al-Kabir -- were captured by the Free Syrian Army from ISIL terrorist group.

Operation Euphrates Shield, which was launched on Aug. 24, aims at improving security, supporting coalition forces, and eliminating the terror threat along Turkey’s border through FSA fighters backed by Turkish armor, artillery, and jets.

Syria has been locked in a vicious civil war since early 2011 when the regime of Bashar al-Assad cracked down on pro-democracy protests.