TURKEY MASSING WEAPONS IN SYRIA AS ISRAEL CONFRONTATION LOOMS
Turkey is deploying large quantities of weapons into Syria under cover of darkness, directed by its intelligence agency MIT. The shipments are a direct response to Tuesday’s Israeli airstrikes on Turkish assets at Abu al-Duhur airbase in Idlib province.
Ankara says it will retaliate against Israeli targets in Syria, Iraq and Lebanon in exchange for the bombing of its assets. Washington has reportedly informed Israel that Turkey will respond to the attack.
The strikes hit a base where Turkish machinery had been rehabilitating the runway and a Turkish military delegation had visited shortly before. Netanyahu said Israel would not tolerate Turkish military deployment near its borders.
Analysts say Syria is now the front line of a Turkish-Israeli proxy war. Turkey wants to rebuild Syria’s military. Israel wants to keep Syria weak. Both cannot win.
Israel has attacked many countries. Now it sees threats everywhere. Turkey says it has the right to defend itself. The world only sees Iran as a threat.
If Turkey and Israel go to war in Syria, who will stop them. And what happens when two NATO-member interests collide with Israeli security demands.