Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of pushing Turkey toward what he described as “dangerous adventures” in Syria, following an Israeli strike on the Abu al-Duhur airbase earlier this week.
Israel carried out the strike on the Syrian airbase on Tuesday, saying Syria was approaching a breach of what Israel described as a security “status quo” agreed with Damascus. Israel had warned against any potential deployment of Turkish forces at the site.
In a post on X, Katz said Israel would not allow any entity to pose a threat to its security.
Syria Denies Plans for a Turkish Military Base
Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani said Damascus had made clear to Israel that there were no plans to establish a Turkish military base at Abu al-Duhur.
He said the facility was being rehabilitated for use by the Syrian Air Force, stressing that there was no intention to establish a permanent Turkish military presence or deploy Turkish forces at the site.
Al-Shaibani acknowledged that Turkish military officers had visited the base as part of training and broader military cooperation. However, he denied any Turkish military buildup, saying the facility was largely empty and had not yet become operational.
Growing Tensions Between Israel and Turkey
The Israeli strike comes amid rising tensions between Israel and Turkey over Syria, with increasingly sharp rhetoric between the two countries as both remain active militarily in the country.
Turkey strongly rejected what it called “untenable allegations” by Israel regarding its military presence in Syria. Ankara has accused Israel of attempting to destabilize Syria and undermine its new administration, while repeatedly calling for international pressure on Israel to respect Syria’s territorial integrity.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel had warned Syria before the strike not to allow a Turkish presence at the airbase.
Al-Shaibani, however, said Israel had no legitimate justification for the bombing and warned that continued Israeli military operations could further increase instability across the region.
US Works to Prevent Israeli-Turkish Clashes
Tom Barrack, the US special presidential envoy for Syria and Iraq, said Washington was working to establish a deconfliction mechanism involving Israel, Turkey and Syria to prevent military incidents and reduce the risk of escalation.
Al-Shaibani said Syria remained open to negotiations with Israel aimed at reducing tensions. He said the two sides had made significant progress toward a security agreement during US-mediated talks, but Israel later backed away from commitments, preventing the agreement from being implemented.
The Syrian foreign minister stressed that any future agreement must address the security concerns of both sides while respecting Syrian sovereignty. He also warned that continued Israeli military operations could contribute to further regional instability.
