FRONTLINE
NEWS—
Reports, News Flashes, and Commentary from Various Conflict Zones Around the Globe
HUMANITY IN TORMENT
By Said AlKhalaki
Turkey is preparing an offensive operation in Northern Syria
The disgrace of fanaticism, so common in the Middle East, Central Asia, and other parts of the Third World, has been cynically exploited by the US and its NATO allies, notably with the creation of the rightwing Jihadist plague. Now Turkey is deepening its involvement in Syria, using the takfiris it has long supported and its own forces.
It’s been quite a while since the treaty on cease-fire in Syria had been signed. We can say February 27 became the new anchor for the people of Syria who are tired of war and havoc. However, the situation doesn’t suit the main sponsors of the “Syrian revolution”, i.e. Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar which had already planned how the country would be divided between them.
What’s concerned territory, Turkey is interested in Syria’s division most of all. The most attractive “piece” for it is Northern Syria with its used-to-be economical capital Aleppo. Obviously, the seized Northern territories would be a step forward in Erdogan’s plan to resurrect the Ottoman Empire he is dreaming about. That is why the seizure of Aleppo is a strategic goal for Erdogan and his partners.
The Turkish government has been supporting Syrian militants during the whole conflict. As the Egyptian news site El-Badil reports, in late 2015 the Turkish government was supplying the Syrian opposition with money and food. Also, it allowed them to cross the border between Turkey and Syria. The fact that militants from terrorist groups fighting in Syria can freely cross the border is also reported by the Kurdish news agency ANHA. According to it, militants go through Bab Al-Salama border crossing point to the North of Aleppo from the Turkish city of Kilis towards the Syrian town Azaz. As a rule, militants visit Turkey for two reasons: to undergo qualified medical treatment to heal their wounds or to attend military training in a special camp where Turks and Saudis work.
Ahmed Tuma
Despite all the efforts of Turkish officials to conceal the facts of support for fighters in Syria, the media regularly reports about them. Even the Syrian opposition’s leaders have never hidden such facts. For example, in last September, one of its leaders Ahmed Tuma told the British newspaper Al-Arabi that Turkey was supplying Syrian militants with fuel and food. Tuma is proud of his relations with Turkish leaders and highly appreciates the role of Turkey in forming the so-called “new Syrian state.” And it’s no wonder as the oppositional leader lives on money received from Turkey.
[dropcap]A[/dropcap][dropcap][/dropcap]ccording to the activists of the media center Syria from Inside in Ankara, all the operations of sponsoring the Syrian oppositional leaders and field commanders of armed groups are conducted through a number of accounts in the Turkish bank Ziraat Bankasi (http://www.ziraat.com.tr). Moreover, through this bank Turkey finances NGOs whose main purpose is to support the Syrian revolution.
Erdogan, by nature a ruthless despot, is obviously counting on Washington to concretize his dream of a new Turkish empire, with a dismembered Syria contributing big chunks of its territory.
Besides that, Turkey’s support for Syrian militants, i.e. financing and training, is included in the US secret program Timber Sycamore, the New York Times reported in January, 2016. According to the journalists of the newspaper, Turkey has been sponsoring Syrian terrorists since 2013.
It’s obvious that the cease-fire in Syria is absolutely disadvantageous for Turkey’s leaders who have contributed so much to overthrowing Bashar Assad. Now, the most important point of the face-off is Aleppo province. As locals say, more than 1000 terrorists arrived there from April to mid-May. The fighters were accompanied by trucks with arms and ammunition and off-road vehicles with large-caliber machine guns. Notably, the vehicles’ deployment is covered by Turkish artillery, regularly shelling Syrian border regions from the Turkish side. It’s clear that all these actions are the evidence of the fact that terrorists are preparing a large-scale offensive in Aleppo.
It’s no doubt that the attack on Aleppo is a part of the “hybrid” war implemented by Turkey in Syria. The artillery shellings of Syrian territories and the support for Syrian terrorists – Turkish news agency Anadolu calls these “a fight against ISIS.” And the Turkish government justify Erdogan’s desire to seize Northern Syria by claiming that it is just an attempt to create the so-called “safety zone” for refugees.
While the world society is trying to reach a peace treaty in Syria, Turkish leaders are planning large-scale operations involving oppositional fighters and radical groups. However, we want to believe that their plans won’t be crowned with success as everyone in Syria understands who is behind the opposition and what the revolutionists want to achieve.
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