Afrin, Syria - Recent (No access Chinese Mainland/Orient TV/Syria Alshaab TV/Zanoubia TV/Alhurra TV/ANN TV/Al Jazeera/Al-Arabiya TV)
1. Various of militants in vehicles

Istanbul, Turkey - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese Mainland)
2. SOUNDBITE (Turkish, dubbed with English) Ibrahim Pazan, former Turkish army officer:
"A meeting with [Syrian President] Assad is a possibility. Nothing is impossible in politics. For the bloodshed to stop in Syria, this option could also be put on the table."

Afrin, Syria - Recent (No access Chinese Mainland/Orient TV/Syria Alshaab TV/Zanoubia TV/Alhurra TV/ANN TV/Al Jazeera/Al-Arabiya TV)
3. Ruined buildings, street
4. Woman digging through rubble
5. Local residents

Istanbul, Turkey - Recent (CGTN - No access Chinese Mainland)
6. SOUNDBITE (Turkish, dubbed with English) Ibrahim Pazan, former Turkish army officer (partially overlaid with shot 7):
"We saw how they launched rockets in a mobile method. It's impossible to eliminate it completely but if we create a safe zone some kilometers away then they will not be able to reach Turkey."

++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
Afrin, Syria - Recent (No access Chinese Mainland/Orient TV/Syria Alshaab TV/Zanoubia TV/Alhurra TV/ANN TV/Al Jazeera/Al-Arabiya TV)
7. Various of soldiers in military vehicles
++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
8. Soldiers, military vehicles
9. Soldiers, man holding Turkish national flag
10. Various of tanks
11. Various of ruined buildings, debris
12. War refugees standing along roadside
13. Various of war refugees in temporary settlements

FILE: Damascus, Syria - Date Unknown (No access Chinese Mainland/Orient TV/Syria Alshaab TV/Zanoubia TV/Alhurra TV/ANN TV/Al Jazeera/Al-Arabiya TV)
14. Syrian national flag
15. Traffic

Turkey should open talks with the Syrian government over the Afrin issue, said a Turkish analyst recently.

On Jan 20, Turkish troops, working alongside Syrian opposition Free Syrian Army (FSA) rebel group, launched Operation Olive Branch to drive the Kurdish militia, known as the People's Protection Units (YPG) out of Afrin.

As the advance of the Turkish army gained momentum on Tuesday in the Kurdish militia-held Afrin district, reports came that some pro-government forces arrived in Afrin to help the Kurdish militants counter the Turkish offensive.

So far Turkish troops have advanced slower than expected, heightening concerns about exacerbating violence in the Syrian conflict, which involves world and regional powers as well as shifting alliances.

The Syrian government, with which Ankara refuses to communicate politically, sees the Turkish army's presence on Syrian soil as an invasion and an assault on its sovereignty.

On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov suggested players in Syria should have an open dialogue with the Syrian government. Some analysts agreed.

"A meeting with [Syrian President] Assad is a possibility. Nothing is impossible in politics. For the bloodshed to stop in Syria, this option could also be put on the table," said Ibrahim Pazan, a former Turkish army officer.

Many analysts emphasized that a security corridor is the only option for Turkey to protect itself.

"We saw how they launched rockets in a mobile method. It's impossible to eliminate it completely but if we create a safe zone some kilometers away then they will not be able to reach Turkey," said Pazan.