Relatives of US personnel in southern Turkey encouraged to leave

WASHINGTON - The United States on Thursday encouraged the families of troops and diplomats stationed in southern Turkey to leave the country as it ramps up efforts in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) group.

"This decision was made out of an abundance of caution, following the commencement of military operations out of Incirlik Air Base," according to a written statement by Mark Toner, a State Department spokesman.

"We will continue to evaluate our security posture in Turkey and worldwide", Toner said. 

Approximately 900 family members will vacate the area reported Andadolu Agency.

The Pentagon and State Department announcement comes days after Turkish warplanes for the first time joined raids by the US-led coalition against Islamic State positions in Syria.

Turkey had made a preliminary step toward joining the counter-offensive by allowing US planes to use Incirlik to attack IS. 

Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said the voluntary evacuations were not the result of any specific new incidents.

"This is an active air base that's carrying out operations, and we are just being abundantly safe here," Cook said.

"Obviously things have changed somewhat at Incirlik, in terms of our operations out of Incirlik," he said, adding that the departures were not authorised because of "any specific new threat".

Family members are not required to leave, but those who choose to fly home will be reimbursed for their travel. The authorisation doesn't extend to families elsewhere in the country.

The US consulate in Adana will continue to operate normally, the State Department said.

Turkey, which had been accused of complacency towards IS fighters in neighbouring Syria, in July launched what it called a war on terror on two fronts: targeting IS in Syria and also Kurdish PKK rebels and their bases in northern Iraq.