Turkey is not preparing to invade Syria: Prime Minister's office
Turkish forces are not preparing to invade Syria, a source within the Turkish Prime Minister's office has told CNN.
The Russian Defense Ministry made the claim that Turkey was carrying out activities on the Syrian border that could be evidence of a planned invasion.
"Simply [Russia] are diverting attention from their attacks on civilians as a country already invading Syria," the source told CNN.
"Turkey has all the rights to take any measures to protect its own security."
Parents of British man alleged to have joined IS in Iraq say they were arrested
Jack and Sally Letts, the parents of a British man who reportedly traveled to Iraq to join the IS group, have told a British TV channel that they were arrested by police after sending their son food and new glasses.
Jack Letts, 20, was dubbed "Jihadi Jack" by some British media outlets after some reported that he had traveled to join IS. His parents say that Jack had traveled to the region for humanitarian purposes and that he had converted to Islam.
The BBC reports that the Thames Valley Police confirmed the arrests.
A spokesman said: "A 55-year-old man and a 53-year-old woman from Oxford, were arrested on suspicious of sending money to Syria which could be used for terrorism purposes... and were bailed until 17 February."
Number of IS militants in Iraq and Syria has fallen: White House
The number of militants fighting alongside the IS group in Iraq and Syria has fallen from around 31,000 to about 25,000, according to a U.S. intelligence report revealed by the White House.
The report says that the almost 20 percent decrease is explained by battlefield casualties and desertions.
We are now closing the live blog for today. Join us again tomorrow for all the latest news concerning Islamic State.
Woman who tipped off police about Paris attacker Abaaoud talks about his plans for more attacks
A woman who is in hiding and under police protection after her phone tip-off helped police track down and kill Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the ringleader of the November 13 Paris attacks that killed 130 people, has talked to the media for the first time.
The woman, whose identity has been changed for security purposes and who was identified in the French media only as "Sonia," contacted a French radio station to talk about the events that led police to Abaaoud in a Saint Denis apartment, where he was killed.
According to Le Figaro, Sonia says she was with Abaaoud's cousin, Hasna Ait Boulahcen, when her friend received a phone call from Belgium, and asked to find a car to go and get a person who needed accommodation.
The two women went to Aubervilliers in the Saint-Denis area of northern Paris. Hasna had been instructed to shout out a "special code," "1010" when she got to the meeting place, to signal her presence.
Sonia said that she saw a man emerge from a bush, wearing a sunhat, orange sneakers and a bomber jacket. Sonia said he "looked like a Romanian...he was smiling, he did not look like a terrorist."
When Sonia recognized the man as Abaaoud, she asked him, "Mister, did you take part in the November 13 events" and he told her he had. "The cafe terraces, that was me," he said.
"But you have killed people, you have killed innocent people," Sonia told him. She says Abaaoud replied that "no, they were not innocent, we must look is what is happening in Syria."
Abaaoud told the woman he was proud of what he had done.
Sonia says that Abaaoud boasted that he had returned to France from Syria "without official papers" and accompanied by "Syrians, Iraqis, French, Germans, English." About 90 people came back to France with him, Abaaoud said.
Abaaoud talked to Sonia about his other planned attacks. Some had been failures, he said, and he planned to ensure that there would be no more failures.
Abaaoud talked about the targets for the next attacks: a nursery in the La Defense business district, a police station and a shopping mall.
He instructed his cousin Hasna to buy him clothes and find him a hideout.
Sonia tried to reason with Hasna, telling her to call the police. But Hasna refused.
"It's my cousin, he will finish his work and then he will leave," Hasna said.
So Sonia called the number provided by French police for people with information about the attacks.
Abaaoud was killed on November 18 when police raided the hideout in Saint Denis. Hasna Ait Boulahcen was also killed.
Sonia told the French media that she feels abandoned by the authorities and has not been offered police protection.
Some responses to today's Syria donors' conference in London:
Analyst Aaron Stein has this to say about reports of a build-up of Syrian refugees trying to cross into Turkey at Kilis.
The situation has been ongoing for weeks, according to Stein.
English-speaking child IS militant beheads Syrian rebel in new killing video
An English-speaking child appears to have carried out the beheading of a Syrian rebel in a grisly new killing video by the IS group.
According to analyst Rita Katz, the child says in English, "America, these are the soldiers you spend money on."
Syrian state media show footage of celebrations in Shi'ite villages
Syrian state news agency SANA has published this video footage showing celebrations in the two Shi'ite villages of Nubl and Zahraa, which had been under siege by rebel groups -- including Al Qaeda affiliate the Al-Nusra Front -- for three years until yesterday.
Syrian government forces backed by Shi'ite militias and Russian air strikes broke through to the villages on Feb. 3 and entered them today.
Syrian army source says Aleppo will soon be encircled by gov't troops
A Syrian army source has said that the city of Aleppo will soon be encircled by government forces, who are advancing with Russian air support, Reuters reports.
Aleppo, just 50 km (30 miles) south of the Turkish border, is a major strategic prize in the war and is currently divided into areas of government and opposition control. Many of the rebels fighting in and around Aleppo have close ties to Turkey.
Since the start of Russia's bombing campaign on Sept. 30, the Syrian army and its allies have launched major offensives to the south of Aleppo against rebels, and to the east against Islamic State.
This week, three days of intensive Russian bombing helped the army and allied fighters to severe a major supply line to the northwest of the city, in the process reaching two Shi'ite towns loyal to the government for the first time in 3-1/2 years.
The report comes as the Syrian civil war seems to be entering a new phase, with government forces backed by loyalist militias -- including foreign Shi'ite militiamen -- advance in Aleppo province, breaking a years'-long rebel siege of two Shi'ite towns, Nubl and Zahraa and breaking rebel supply lines from Aleppo into Turkey.
Fall of Aleppo would be devastating for rebels
If Aleppo falls to the government, it would be a "devastating blow" to anti-Assad forces, the Guardian reports. These forces include Al-Qaeda affiliate the Al-Nusra Front, which sent a large convoy of reinforcements to northern Aleppo last week.
Aleppo 'emptying en masse'
The Russian Defense Ministry says that rebel fighters -- whom it calls terrorists regardless of which group they belong to -- are retreating toward the Turkish border.
Meanwhile, Turkey has said that the Syrian army offensive in Aleppo, backed by Russian air strikes, has caused an exodus of people from northern Aleppo towards Turkey.
Analysts have warned that the Syrian government advances in Aleppo will prompt an even greater flow of refugees from Syria as Aleppo empties.
This video footage published today shows newly-arrived displaced Syrians in the border town of Azaz.