Syria

Syria agrees to buffer zone along Turkish border, say reports

Turkish media says deal struck in wake of this week's deadly border shelling incident which killed five Turkish civilians

the Guardian,

6 October, 2012

Syria has agreed to keep its forces six miles (10km) from the Turkish border in the wake of this week's deadly shelling incident, Turkish media have reported.

Such a move would amount to a buffer zone, fulfilling a longstanding request by Syrian opposition groups that would allow rebels to operate freely and civilians to seek refuge.

Syria has not confirmed the claim and Ankara has made no official announcement. However, several Turkish media outlets, citing well-placed sources, claimed that a deal had been struck.

Opposition groups have implored Turkey and the international community to establish an area in which they can move without fear of jets and helicopters, claiming it would be a significant step in their 19-month battle to oust the regime of Bashar al-Assad.

However, the demands have been rejected by Ankara, as well as the US and Nato, who have all repeatedly balked at suggestions that they intervene directly in the conflict. A buffer zone would not be effective unless it was enforced militarily, something that Turkey has so far been unwilling to do. However, the Syrian shelling of the Turkish border town of Akcacle has spurred Ankara to recalibrate its military options to deal with the growing crisis across the southern border.

On Thursday, the Turkish parliament approved a bill that would allow its military to launch cross-border raids at any point in the next year. Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Turkey was not pushing for an escalation with its once close ally. "We are not interested in war," he said. "But we're not far from it either."

Syria said it was waiting for the results of an investigation before publicly assigning blame for the shelling, which killed five Turkish civilians and wounded nine more. But it has privately conceded it was at fault and did not respond to a barrage of retaliatory Turkish shellfire, which is thought to have killed several Syrian soldiers.

Turkish troops fired at Syria again yesterday, responding to another mortar shell that struck Turkish territory, the country's state-run news agency said.

The shelling came hours after Erdogan called on Syria not to test Turkey's patience. The Anadolu Agency quoted Governor Celalettin Lekesiz as saying a mortar shell hit 50m inside the border in a rural area near the village of Asagipulluyaz in Hatay province. No one was hurt by the mortar, but Turkish troops based in the area immediately responded with fire, he said.

The Syrian air force continued to pound Aleppo on Friday and reportedly launched its heaviest raids over the city of Homs in the past five months.

Video footage uploaded to the internet on Thursday appeared to show a military helicopter being struck then crashing to the ground over Damascus, not far from where rebels claimed earlier on Friday to have seized control of a missile base.

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Turkey Continues Artillery Strikes, Several Syrian Soldiers Killed

Second Day of Strikes Center on Tel Abyad Border Crossing

Anti War,

4 October, 2012

Though the indications from Turkey’s political leadership are that they are winding down the clash and not looking to escalate, Turkish forces continued to attack northern Syria today, with artillery shellings centering on the town of Tel Abyad.

Exactly details of the damage done in two days of Turkish strikes into Syria have not been released, but several Syrian soldiers were reported slain in today’s strikes, with Tel Abyad serving as the contested center of the dispute.

Tel Abyad is the Syrian town along the border with Turkey and was recently captured by the rebels. The crossing in the town links it to the Turkish town of Akcakale, which Syrian shells hit yesterday, killing five civilians.

The border crossings into Turkey are key targets for the rebels, as it provides them access to fighters and equipment from Turkey, which is more or less openly backing them in the ongoing Syrian Civil War. The Tel Abyad-Akcakale crossing is one of seven border crossings between Syria and Turkey, and one of three currently held by the rebels.

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Turkey not far from war with Syria: Erdogan

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has warned that his country is not far from war with Syria amid intensified tensions fueled by fresh cross-border attacks.

PressTV,

6 October, 2012

"We are not interested in war, but we're not far from it either," Erdogan told a crowd in Istanbul on Friday.

"Those who attempt to test Turkey's deterrence, its decisiveness, its capacity; I say here they are making a fatal mistake," he warned.

The remarks came as the Turkish military continued pounding targets inside Syria for the third day, claiming the attack was in response to a mortar bomb that crashed into a village of Yayladagi town in the southern province of Hatay.

Ankara launched its military strikes on Syrian targets on Wednesday after mortar shells from the Syrian side of the border killed five civilians in Akcakale of Turkey's southeastern Sanliurfa Province.

On Thursday, the Turkish parliament authorized cross-border military action against Syria “when deemed right.”

Tensions have been running high between Syria and Turkey, with Damascus blaming Turkey -- along with Saudi Arabia and Qatar -- for backing a deadly insurgency that has claimed the lives of many Syrians, including security and army personnel.

In an interview with the Turkish Cumhuriyet daily in July, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Ankara “has supplied all logistic support to the terrorists who have killed our people.”

Turkey returns fire after Syrian mortar bomb hits farm – state news agency

Ankara’s military forces have struck back after a mortar bomb fired from Syria hit a farm in the Turkish province of Hatay, reports Reuters quoting the state news agency..

RT,

5 October, 2012

A mortar shell fell near the town of Yayladagi, some 50 meters away from the Syria border on Friday afternoon. The Turkish army immediately “fired back at targets” within Syria, Turkish media report quoting officials

There were no injuries in Turkey, say Hatay authorities.

The exchange of fire between the two countries follows a similar incident on Wednesday, which left five people dead and eight others wounded.Turkey's artillery pounded targets inside Syria for twelve hours in retaliation for the killings.

On Thursday, Turkey’s parliament also authorized cross-border military operations into Syria "when necessary."

The UN Security Council has urged Ankara and Damascus to exercise restraint. But the Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan later said his country was “not far” from war with its Arab neighbor.

"We are not interested in war, but we're not far from it either," Erdogan declared Friday. "Those who attempt to test Turkey's deterrence, its decisiveness, its capacity, I say here they are making a fatal mistake."

Russia says it has received assurances from Damascus that Wednesday's strike on Turkey was a tragic accident. But Erdogan dismissed that pointing out this was not the first time Syrian mortar rounds had reached Turkey.

Previously, bombs had been hitting non-residential areas, said the PM, so Turkey only filed protests. The PM stressed that the deaths of two women and three children could not have been handled the same way.