Turkey presses for safe zone in Syria after U.S. missile attack

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged on Friday the international community to declare a safe zone in war-torn Syria, private NTV channel reported.

Turkey sees U.S. military strikes on chemical weapons sites in Syria as "positive concrete steps" but not enough, Erdogan said at a rally in the border province of Hatay, adding "I hope this operation marks a beginning."

The Turkish president stated Turkey's assertion that a safe zone should be established in Syria.

"Our Syrian brothers and sisters in Turkey could live there on their own soil," he said.

On the same day, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim also called for a safe zone to be established in Syria.

Addressing a crowd at an inauguration ceremony in Turkey's southeastern province of Hakkari, Yildirim said a safe zone in northern Syria must be formed and Syrians fleeing from the war should be secured there.

"We reiterate our proposal to the international community, and we are also making preparations on the issue in our own capacity," he said.

Earlier, Turkish Presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin stressed the need to "enforce a no-fly zone and create safe zones in Syria without further delay."

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also said safe zones in Syria were "now more important than ever."

At down Friday, the United States targeted a Syrian air base with nearly 60 Tomahawk missiles, killing six Syrian soldiers and nine civilians, including four children. Endit