atrox6661
10-04-2012, 04:23 AM
Istanbul, Turkey (CNN) -- Turkey was shelling Syrian military sites near its border early Thursday, according to the opposition, even as the Turkish parliament was to convene an emergency session to consider granting authority to preemptively strike its neighbor.
The opposition claims follows news Wednesday that Turkey fired on Syrian government targets in response to the shelling of a Turkish border town.
The cross border attacks are raising fears the spillover from Syria's civil war could ignite a wider regional conflict. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned the strikes demonstrate "how Syria's conflict is threatening not only the security of the Syrian people but increasingly causing harm to its neighbors."
The Turkish military began shelling Syrian military sites in Tal Abyad, about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the Turkish border, on Thursday, the al-Raqqa provincial chapter of the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria reported.
A number of Syrian security forces were killed in the Turkish shelling of a military center in Rasm al-Ghazal, just south of Tal Abyad, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
At least five people were killed and more than a dozen injured when the border town of Akcakale was hit by artillery fired by Syrian government forces, the statement said.
"Our armed forces on the border responded immediately to this atrocious attack within the rules of engagement, and points in Syria determined by radar were hit with artillery fire," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's said, according to a statement released by his office.
"Turkey, within the confines of the rules of engagement and international law, will never leave these types of provocations aimed at our national security unanswered."
The Turkish parliament is expected to considering granting the government the right to hit Syrian targets that it perceives poses a threat to its security, according to Turkish media reports.
Relations between Damascus and Istanbul have ruptured over the 18-month conflict in Syria, destroying a once cozy bilateral relationship that saw visa-free travel between the two countries and booming trade.
But as the body count has climbed -- an estimated 30,000 dead, according to Syria opposition groups -- and tens of thousands fled across the border to Turkey, Erdogan began calling for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.
Turkey has had a key role in calling for a transition of power in Syria, hosting international diplomats at ad hoc meetings of the Friends of Syria, a group that was formed after the U.N. Security Council failed to take action.
Syria, meanwhile, has accused Turkey of arming and funding Syrian rebels.
In a statement, Ban warned late Wednesday the "ongoing militarization of the conflict in Syria is leading to tragic results for the Syrian people."
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/04/world/meast/syria-civil-war/?hpt=hp_t1
The opposition claims follows news Wednesday that Turkey fired on Syrian government targets in response to the shelling of a Turkish border town.
The cross border attacks are raising fears the spillover from Syria's civil war could ignite a wider regional conflict. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned the strikes demonstrate "how Syria's conflict is threatening not only the security of the Syrian people but increasingly causing harm to its neighbors."
The Turkish military began shelling Syrian military sites in Tal Abyad, about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) from the Turkish border, on Thursday, the al-Raqqa provincial chapter of the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria reported.
A number of Syrian security forces were killed in the Turkish shelling of a military center in Rasm al-Ghazal, just south of Tal Abyad, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
At least five people were killed and more than a dozen injured when the border town of Akcakale was hit by artillery fired by Syrian government forces, the statement said.
"Our armed forces on the border responded immediately to this atrocious attack within the rules of engagement, and points in Syria determined by radar were hit with artillery fire," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's said, according to a statement released by his office.
"Turkey, within the confines of the rules of engagement and international law, will never leave these types of provocations aimed at our national security unanswered."
The Turkish parliament is expected to considering granting the government the right to hit Syrian targets that it perceives poses a threat to its security, according to Turkish media reports.
Relations between Damascus and Istanbul have ruptured over the 18-month conflict in Syria, destroying a once cozy bilateral relationship that saw visa-free travel between the two countries and booming trade.
But as the body count has climbed -- an estimated 30,000 dead, according to Syria opposition groups -- and tens of thousands fled across the border to Turkey, Erdogan began calling for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down.
Turkey has had a key role in calling for a transition of power in Syria, hosting international diplomats at ad hoc meetings of the Friends of Syria, a group that was formed after the U.N. Security Council failed to take action.
Syria, meanwhile, has accused Turkey of arming and funding Syrian rebels.
In a statement, Ban warned late Wednesday the "ongoing militarization of the conflict in Syria is leading to tragic results for the Syrian people."
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/04/world/meast/syria-civil-war/?hpt=hp_t1