Türkiye: No Plans for Erdogan-Assad Meeting

 Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Bali, Indonesia, 16 November 2022. (EPA)
Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Bali, Indonesia, 16 November 2022. (EPA)
TT

Türkiye: No Plans for Erdogan-Assad Meeting

 Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Bali, Indonesia, 16 November 2022. (EPA)
Türkiye's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks during a press conference on the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Bali, Indonesia, 16 November 2022. (EPA)

Türkiye on Monday confirmed there are no plans for a meeting soon between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syrian President Bashar Assad.

“We don’t have an immediate plan for such a meeting, but our president is sending a message: If you act responsibly, if you address the security concerns and allow the political process to move forward, then I might be prepared to take that step,” Turkish presidential spokesperson Ibrahim Kalin said in a television interview.

He added that Türkiye also needs to know whether the Assad regime will take a clear stance against the PKK and its Syrian offshoots the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG).

Last week, Reuters said Assad had rejected a proposal by Russia's President Vladimir Putin to meet Erdogan. It said no rapprochement will happen before theTurkish presidential and parliamentary elections next year not to hand Erdogan a victory for free.

Meanwhile, Türkiye denied that Ankara requested a Russian-Iranian green light for its operations against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northern Syria.

“We don’t ask for permission, we just coordinate with our allies when we face a national security threat,” Kalin said

He also pointed out that under a deal signed in 2019, the US was supposed to make YPG/PKK ‘terrorists’ move 30 kilometers (18 miles) away from the Turkish border, but the agreement was never implemented.

Meanwhile, Turkish intelligence forces "neutralized" a senior PKK member in northern Syria.

The Turkish Anadolu Agency (AA) said Siham Mislih, codenamed "Mizgin Kobani," was neutralized in an operation by the National Intelligence Organization (MIT).

Mislih was one of the senior YPG/PKK terrorists in Ayn Issa and plotted terrorist acts against the Turkish security forces in the Operation Peace Spring region, AA added.

Also, the Turkish Defense Ministry said Turkish security forces “neutralized” five YPG/PKK members in northern Syria.

The PYG members were plotting to launch an attack in the Operation Peace Spring, Olive Branch and Euphrates Shield zones, the ministry said in a statement.



Almost Half of Attacks on Heath Care in Lebanon Have Been Deadly, WHO Says

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
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Almost Half of Attacks on Heath Care in Lebanon Have Been Deadly, WHO Says

Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)
Smoke rises as a result of an Israeli airstrike on the village of Al-Khiyam in southern Lebanon, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, northern Israel, 22 November 2024, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. (EPA)

The World Health Organization says nearly half of the attacks on health care in Lebanon have been deadly since the Middle East conflict erupted in October last year, the highest such rate anywhere in the world.

The UN health agency says 65 out of 137, or 47%, of recorded “attacks on health care” in Lebanon over that time period have proven fatal to at least one person, and often many more.

WHO’s running global tally counts attacks, whether deliberate or not, that affect places like hospitals, clinics, medical transport, and warehouses for medical supplies, as well as medics, doctors, nurses and the patients they treat.

Nearly half of attacks on health care in Lebanon since last October and the majority of deaths occurred since an intensified Israeli military campaign began against Hezbollah in the country two months ago.

The health agency said 226 health workers and patients have been killed and 199 injured in Lebanon between Oct. 7, 2023 and this Monday.