Turkish Forces Pull out of Bases in Syria’s North

Two fighters in a Turkish-backed faction seen at a military position on the outskirts of the town of Kaljibrin in northern Syria. (AFP)
Two fighters in a Turkish-backed faction seen at a military position on the outskirts of the town of Kaljibrin in northern Syria. (AFP)
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Turkish Forces Pull out of Bases in Syria’s North

Two fighters in a Turkish-backed faction seen at a military position on the outskirts of the town of Kaljibrin in northern Syria. (AFP)
Two fighters in a Turkish-backed faction seen at a military position on the outskirts of the town of Kaljibrin in northern Syria. (AFP)

Turkish forces evacuated two bases in the western countryside of Tal Abyad, in the northern countryside of Raqqa, northern Syria, sources revealed.

The forces withdrew from their military bases in the villages of Hareqli and Tannuz.

The withdrawal, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which is a UK-based war monitor, was coordinated with Russian forces in the area.

The withdrawal will likely be followed by Russian and regime advances in Tal Abyad in an unspoken agreement between Moscow and Ankara.

Meanwhile, in a sign that Ankara may not have completely abandoned its plans to launch a cross-border military operation against Kurdish forces, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan affirmed his country's determination to connect safe zones in northern Syria soon.

Last May, Turkey announced that it would pursue a full-scale military campaign in northern Syria to complete the establishment of safe zones near its borders. The said zones would extend 30 kilometers deep in Syrian territory.

On Monday, Erdogan threatened to clear northeast Syria from Kurdish-led forces amid an increase in drone attacks and shelling in northeast Syria.

“We will continue our fight against terrorism. Our decision to establish a 30-kilometre-deep secure line along our southern border is permanent,” he told the 13th Ambassadors Conference in Ankara.

“I hope we will join the parts of this security zone together soon by clearing the last areas where the terrorist organization is nesting in Syria,” added Erdogan in reference to the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG).

Despite Erdogan’s loud rhetoric, Turkey’s plans for a military campaign in Syria remains without international support.

The US, which considers the Kurds a key ally in the war against ISIS in Syria, has warned against any Turkish military move, saying that it would pose a threat to the forces participating in the war against the terror group.

European countries also rejected any new Turkish incursion.

For its part, Russia demanded that Ankara cooperate with Damascus instead of resorting to a military option.

Iran, another backer of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Damascus, declared that any Turkish operation would play out in the interests of terrorists only, and would destabilize the region.



Erdogan Accuses Israel of Seeking to ‘Dynamite’ Syria ‘Revolution'

 Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2025) in Antalya, on April 11, 2025. (AFP)
Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2025) in Antalya, on April 11, 2025. (AFP)
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Erdogan Accuses Israel of Seeking to ‘Dynamite’ Syria ‘Revolution'

 Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2025) in Antalya, on April 11, 2025. (AFP)
Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gestures as he delivers a speech during the opening ceremony of the 4th edition of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2025) in Antalya, on April 11, 2025. (AFP)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday accused Israel of sowing divisions in Syria in a bid to "dynamite" the "revolution" that toppled strongman Bashar al-Assad.

Türkiye is a key backer of Syria's new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa whose Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group led the opposition coalition which ousted Assad in December.

"Israel is trying to dynamite the December 8 revolution by stirring up ethnic and religious affiliations and turning minorities in Syria against the government," Erdogan told a diplomacy forum in the southern Mediterranean resort of Antalya.

Erdogan's comments come as officials from Türkiye and Israel began talks this week aimed at easing tensions over Syria.

Israel has launched air strikes and ground incursions to keep Syrian forces away from its border.

A Turkish defense ministry source said on Thursday that the first technical meeting with Israel had taken place in Azerbaijan on Wednesday.

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned this did not mean the two sides were moving towards normalizing ties strained over Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza.

Türkiye has suspended all trade with Israel, with Erdogan accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of "genocide" in the Palestinian territory since Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack on Israel began the war.

On Friday, Erdogan condemned Israel's "barbarism" after a pre-dawn air strike that officials in Gaza said killed 10 members of the same family.

"Just this morning, 10 people, including seven children, from the same family were martyred in Khan Younis. If this is not barbarism, I ask you, what is it?" he asked at the diplomacy forum.

- Sharaa at diplomacy forum -

Sharaa, who arrived in Antalya earlier in the day, was due to meet with Erdogan on the sidelines of the diplomacy forum.

It marks his second trip to Türkiye as leader after Erdogan welcomed him to the capital Ankara in February.

After meeting with Qatar's foreign minister Sharaa, wearing a suit and a tie, was mobbed by reporters clamoring for comment.

Ankara's influence on Syria's new authorities has worried Israel, which considers Sharaa's forces to be extremists and has launched hundreds of strikes on military sites in Syria since Assad's ouster.

"Israel is turning into a problematic country that directly threatens the stability of the region, especially with its attacks on Lebanon and Syria," Erdogan told the forum.

The Turkish leader said the Syrian "revolution" offered an opportunity to bring stability to the region and warned it should not be wasted.

"We will not allow Syria to be dragged into a new vortex of instability," he said.

He also said Israeli strikes were denting efforts to combat the ISIS group.