ISIS loses control of ALL its border territories as Free Syrian Army strikes major blow against jihadis
Turkish-backed rebels closed in on ISIS over the weekend
ISIS has lost control of all territories on Syria's border with Turkey, according to monitoring groups.
A spokesperson for the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told The Independent the extremist group conceded control of its two final villages on the border, and retreated between 7 and 8 kilometres to the south.
It is a major blow to the extremist group in terms of their ability to bring in foreign fighters via Turkey - and marks the end of an operation to take control of the area by the Turkish-backed, rebel Free Syrian Army.
On August 24, Turkey deployed tanks and air power to support the rebels, who swept into the border town of Jarablus.
Then, on Saturday, Turkey and its rebel allies opened a new line of attack in northern Syria, rolling across the border at Al-Rai -some 34 miles west of Jarablus - closing in on ISIS and securing the stretch between the towns in just two days.
Rami Abdulrahman, from the UK-based Observatory, said: "Everything is finished. There is no more Isis at the border."
Meanwhile, Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency reported the advance had “removed terror organization Daesh's [ISIS] physical contact with the Turkish border in northern Syria."
The advance took place little more than a week after Turkey launched its operation in Syria - with the dual aim of targeting ISIS and preventing the advance of the U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG militia, which, despite its key role in the fight against ISIS, is considered a terrorist organisation by Turkey.
Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan, who has repeatedly said that Turkey's allies should differentiate between Islamic State and the YPG as both groups pose a threat to Turkey, said: "It is our wish that a terror corridor not be formed across our southern border".
Meanwhile, referring to the Kurds' desire for autonomy during a speech, Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said: "We will never allow the formation of an artificial state in the north of Syria."