Turkey to open new Afrin border crossing in May

By Hatice Ozdemir Tosun 

ANKARA

Turkey will open a new border crossing to the northwestern Syrian city of Afrin in May, Customs and Trade Minister Bulent Tufenkci told Anadolu Agency Wednesday.

Tufenkci said: "We plan to open the customs gate by mid-May."

"Our work for the customs gate is still continuing...Our works will end soon."

He said the gate would speed up the delivery of humanitarian aid to Afrin and meet the infrastructure needs of the region.

"The gate will also contribute to development of trade there," he said.

The Customs and Trade Ministry and the Hatay Governor’s office in southern Turkey have agreed to open the crossing near the village of Hamam in Kumlu.

The village is located near Jinderes, Afrin, which was liberated by Turkish Armed Forces and the Free Syrian Army fighters during Operation Olive Branch, which was launched on Jan. 20 to clear YPG/PKK-Daesh terrorists from the area.