Turkish jets conduct patrols near Syrian border

Turkish fighter jets conducted a sortie near the border with Syria on Monday in light of an escalation of clashes between Syrian security forces and armed rebels in the area, private Dogan news agency reported. F-16 jets, armed with ammunition, took off from an air base in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir with an urgent mission to patrol Turkey's border with Syria, according to the report. It said the pilots were given orders to attack Syrian jets in the event of a border violation by the southern neighbor. Rocket shelling near Syria's border flew into Turkey and hit the General Directorate of Agricultural Enterprises in Ceylanpinar town of Sanliurfa province in southeastern Turkey on Monday. Turkey and Syria have been exchanging fire sporadically on the border for many days since a mortar shell from Syria fell in the Turkish border town of Akcakale in Sanliurfa province on Oct. 3 and killed five Turks. Ankara has been complaining about the spillover of Syrian violence into its territory and expressed last month that it would take action if stray shells from Syria repeatedly landed onto its soil. Turkey, once an ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad but now a leading voice urging his ouster, shelters over 120,000 Syrian refugees and has reportedly provided Syrian rebel leaders with sanctuary.