By extracting dozens of its soldiers surrounded by Islamist fighters in Syria, Turkey has warded off a potential crisis and shown its ability to maneuver between rival warring parties, including the Islamic State group.
Several hundred Turkish ground troops, backed by tanks and drones, mounted an eight-hour operation on Saturday night to evacuate the 38 soldiers guarding the tomb of Suleyman Shah, grandfather of the founder of the Ottoman Empire.
The fact there were no clashes appeared to suggest that Islamic State fighters surrounding the site were either warned or coerced by Turkey not to try to disrupt the incursion, the first it has mounted since Syria's civil war broke out in 2011.
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