ANKARA, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) — As many as 48 Islamic State (IS) terrorists were killed in Al-Bab, in northern Syria, in military operations in the last 24 hours, the Turkish General Staff said on Monday.

It said 246 IS targets, including shelters, defense positions, vehicles and command centers, were hit in the operations.

In addition to Al-Bab, Turkish warplanes also bombed IS positions in Bzagah, Suflaniyah and Kabr Al-Mukri, the General Staff said.

The Turkish military launched the Euphrates Shield Operation last August against both IS and the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), the military wing of the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

Turkey regards the YPG and the PYD as terrorist organizations due to their links to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party.