Turkey patriot missiles is arrive

FOUR batteries of Patriot missiles have arrived in Turkey as part of a NATO mission to protect the Turkish border from any spillover of the conflict in neighbouring Syria, a NATO source has told AFP.
A ship carrying two German Patriot missile batteries anchored at the southwestern port of Iskenderun on Monday and its cargo was being unloaded, the source said.
The source said a second ship carrying two Dutch Patriot missile batteries also arrived at Iskenderun after a two-week journey, waiting behind the German ship to unload its cargo, as well as 300 support troops.
The United States has also begun deployment of two Patriot surface-to-air missile batteries to contribute to the mission, which NATO says will be operational by early February.
Its first shipment arrived by air earlier this month at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey's southeast. Additional equipment will be sent by sea later in January.
The six batteries of the US-made missiles, effective against aircraft and short-range missiles, will be deployed in the southern city of Adana and the southeastern cities of Kahramanmaras and Gaziantep, along with 350 troops from each contributing nation.
Turkey requested help from its NATO allies after shells landed on its border areas from Syria in October, killing several villagers.
NATO approved their deployment in December, saying the use of ballistic missiles by the Syrian regime posed a threat to Turkey and insisting that the move was purely defensive.
But Syria's allies Iran and Russia oppose the Patriot deployment, fearing that it could spark regional conflict also drawing in NATO.

Patriot missiles arrive in Turkey