As many as 13 Turkish soldiers have died since the country launched an offensive into Syria on Jan. 20 to push back Kurdish fighters there.
Turkey sees the Syrian Kurdish presence on its border as a national security threat. However, the U.S. has backed the Kurds as an important ally in fighting terrorist groups like ISIS. The conflict has put even more stress on Turkey's already-strained relationship with the U.S.
Turkey claims Syrian Kurds have targeted civilian neighborhoods in Turkey in response to the offense against them.
