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Israel may be provoking Turkey with Syria airstrikes, says US envoy
๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡ท Turkey /Conflict & Security

Israel may be provoking Turkey with Syria airstrikes, says US envoy

From Cumhuriyet · () Turkish

Translated from Turkish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • U.S. Ambassador to Ankara Tom Barrack suggested Israel might be provoking Turkey with its airstrikes in Syria.
  • Barrack stated Israel's warplanes approached within 80 kilometers of the Turkish border without prior notification to Ankara.
  • He warned that such actions could be perceived as a direct attack by Turkish forces, potentially leading to military retaliation.

U.S. Ambassador to Ankara and Special Envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack, has raised concerns that Israel may be provoking Turkey through its airstrikes in Syria. Speaking to content creator Mario Nawfal, Barrack revealed that Israeli warplanes advanced to within approximately 80 kilometers of the Turkish border during a recent operation targeting the Abu al-Duhur airbase in Syria.

It is a very dangerous game to have warplanes on the border without any notification or agreement.

โ€” Tom BarrackU.S. Ambassador to Ankara Tom Barrack on the risks of Israeli airstrikes near the Turkish border.

Crucially, Barrack noted that Ankara was not informed of the operation beforehand. He emphasized the significant risks involved when warplanes operate near the border of a country with a strong military like Turkey without prior notification or agreement. "It is a very dangerous game to have warplanes on the border without any notification or agreement," Barrack stated, suggesting that Israel might be attempting to provoke Turkey.

Israel might be trying to provoke the Turks.

โ€” Tom BarrackU.S. Ambassador to Ankara Tom Barrack suggesting Israel's potential motive for its actions in Syria.

Barrack drew parallels to Turkey's 2015 downing of a Russian warplane that violated its airspace, warning that a miscalculation could escalate tensions into direct conflict between the two nations. He explained that while Israel had conveyed its concerns to the U.S. and Syrian authorities, and back-channel communications occurred between Mossad and Syrian officials, Israel proceeded with the strike without informing Turkey.

The real problem here was that Turkey did not know this was coming.

โ€” Tom BarrackU.S. Ambassador to Ankara Tom Barrack on the lack of notification to Turkey regarding Israeli airstrikes in Syria.

"The real problem here was that Turkey did not know this was coming," Barrack said, highlighting that such unannounced military activity could have severe consequences, especially given existing political tensions between Turkey and Israel. He added that Turkey's fighter jets could have been scrambled if they were unaware of the Israeli aircraft's intentions, potentially leading to a grave, unintended outcome. Barrack stressed that the U.S. aims to keep communication channels open to prevent military surprises and direct confrontations.

A mistake could have had really dire consequences.

โ€” Tom BarrackU.S. Ambassador to Ankara Tom Barrack on the potential for unintended escalation due to miscommunication.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Cumhuriyet in Turkish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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