Syria turned in to a literal free-for-all, almost immediately after the fall of Assad regime which essentially ended the Syria civil war, with Israel, Turkey, and the US moving swiftly to achieve their respective goals in the region.
(File)
Syria civil war: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned Israel of “serious consequences” if the Jewish state does not withdraw its armed forces from neighbouring Syria and stop its ‘aggressive actions’ in the war-torn country. Addressing a meeting of his ruling Justice and Development Party, Erdogan called for the immediate withdrawal of Israeli forces from Syria, saying that “aggressive actions of the forces attacking Syrian territory, especially Israel, should end as soon as possible, or it will lead to adverse consequences for everyone”.
Turkey can ‘crush’ all terrorists
Asserting that Ankara has the capability and power to “crush” all terror groups operating in Syria, including the Islamic State and the Kurdish fighters, Recep Tayyip Erdogan asked all foreign powers, including the United States, to withdraw from Syria. The Turkish President the US has “no solid basis to maintain its presence in the region about fabricated excuses like the Islamic State threat”.
“If the Islamic State threat actually exists in the region, then Turkey, being the biggest regional power, has the will and capability to tackle this nuisance. All powers should withdraw their hands from Syria and we, along with our Syrian brothers and sisters, will swiftly crush the heads of the Islamic State, YPG and other terrorist organizations,” he stated.
Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad, Turkey has said repeatedly it was time for the Kurdish YPG militia to disband. Ankara considers the group, which spearheads the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as a terrorist organisation.
Israel-Hamas peace agreement ‘important opportunity’
Erdogan also hailed the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, terming it as an “important opportunity” to achieve peace and stability in the region, while describing Israel’s military offensive in Gaza as a genocide which was carried out for over 15 months.
“The achievement of ceasefire in Gaza is an important opportunity for peace and stability in the entire region. We are closely monitoring the ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas and hope to receive positive news soon,” Erdogan had said before the ceasefire deal was announced.
Israel responds to Erdogan
Meanwhile, responding to the Erdogan’s remarks, Israel’s Foreign Ministry asserted that Israel will continue to protect its borders, and asked Turkish President to refrain from making such statements.
Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), stormed Syria, almost immediately after the toppling of the Bashar al-Assad regime and the capture of Damascus by rebel group in early December 2024. Israeli forces trampled the buffer zone, occupied Golan Heights, including capturing the strategic Mount Hermon, Syria’s tallest peak, which it has occupied since.
Last week, Israel said it would continue to maintain a 15-kilometer security buffer inside Syrian territory, which would be manned by the IDF to nullify the threat of rocket attacks from Golan Heights. Additionally, Israel also plans to establish a 60-kilometer zone of influence inside Syria, allowing intelligence control to monitor and mitigate emerging threats in the region, according to reports.
Syria turned in to a literal free-for-all, almost immediately after the fall of Assad regime which essentially ended the Syria civil war, with Israel, Turkey, and the US moving swiftly to achieve their respective goals in the region. While Israel launching a massive operation to wipe out Syria’s military infrastructure and occupied the Mount Hermon peak, Turkey launched attacks on the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) rebel group in the northeast, a move which irked the US.