Turkish jets carried out 26 airstrikes on 18 Syrian Kurdish YPG militant targets in northern Syria and killed 160 to 200 militants, the Turkish army said in a statement on Thursday.

The army said its jets late on Wednesday pounded areas recently captured by the YPG forces, and destroyed nine buildings, one armored vehicle and four other vehicles that belonged to the Kurdish YPG militia.

Turkey, a main backer of the insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad, entered the Syrian conflict in August, using its armor and air power to help Free Syrian Army rebel groups take territory near the border held by Islamic State.