Turkey has called on Israel to end what it described as “reckless attacks” after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defended an Israeli strike on a Syrian military air base.
Turkey’s Defense Ministry said Thursday that Israel’s justification for the attack was unfounded, after Netanyahu claimed that Ankara had been preparing to deploy military forces at the Syrian facility.
According to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency, the Defense Ministry said no Turkish military delegation had been present at the air base either before or during the Israeli strike.
Netanyahu acknowledged Tuesday that Israel had carried out the attack. The strike was later criticized by U.S. special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack as an “unnecessary escalation.”
The Israeli prime minister said Turkey had been planning to deploy military capabilities at an air base in southern Aleppo. Turkish authorities rejected the allegation as baseless.
The exchange comes amid growing tensions between Israel and Turkey over Syria, where both countries are seeking to protect their strategic interests following major political and security changes in the country.
Turkey, a NATO member and a close U.S. ally, has increasingly criticized Israeli military operations in the region. Israel, meanwhile, has raised concerns over the expansion of Turkish military influence in Syria.
Turkey also linked Netanyahu’s actions to Israel’s upcoming October elections, accusing the Israeli government of pursuing “expansionist and destabilizing policies” in the region.
The latest dispute risks adding another layer of tension to already strained relations between Ankara and Jerusalem, while raising concerns about potential clashes between the interests of two major regional military powers operating in Syria.
