ANKARA 

Turkish Health Minister Recep Akdag said on Thursday that 85 Turkish soldiers were being treated in different hospitals after being injured in northern Syria as part of the Operation Euphrates Shield.

“Four of them are in critical condition,” Akdag told reporters in Ankara adding that the health ministry teams are working for better treatment.

Operation Euphrates Shield began in late August to improve security, support coalition forces and eliminate the terror threat along Turkey’s border using Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters backed by Turkish artillery and jets.

In another statement, Turkish Defense Minister Fikri Isik said 16 Turkish soldiers were martyred during an operation on Wednesday to capture Al-Bab, a strategic city for Daesh in southeastern Aleppo.

He also added that over 1000 Daesh terrorists were killed since the beginning of the Euphrates Shield operation.

Health Minister Akdag did not mention whether the soldiers were wounded during Wednesday's clashes.

Meanwhile, the Turkish General Staff said in a written statement that 90 Daesh targets had been destroyed in Al-Bab airstrikes, while 160 terrorists were killed in the same day.

*Reporting by Yeşim Sert Karaaslan; Writing by Sorwar Alam