Fourteen Turkish soldiers have been killed and 33 wounded in three separate suicide attacks by the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in northern Syria, the Turkish Army and state media say.
According to an army statement and TRT television, the attacks took place on December 21 in the Syrian town of Al-Bab, which Turkish troops and Turkey-backed Syrian opposition fighters are trying to capture from IS militants.
The toll is the heaviest single-day loss for the Turkish Army since August, when Turkey sent ground troops to support Turkey-backed Syrian opposition forces in clearing a border area of IS militants and to curb Syrian Kurdish territorial expansion.
A total of 35 Turkish soldiers have died in northern Syria since the operation began.
Earlier on December 21, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said IS was fighting "for dear life" in Al-Bab, carrying out suicide bombings and attacks with improvised explosive devices.