Syria accuses Turkey of aiding anti-Syria militants
Syria has accused neighboring Turkey of having provided logistical support as well as massive fire cover for foreign-sponsored militants to capture the northwestern cities of Idlib and Jisr al-Shughur.
The Syrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, in a statement released on Tuesday, said the move demonstrates “a direct Turkish aggression against Syria and proves the open involvement of the Turkish government in supporting terrorism and violating the sovereignty of a UN member country in blatant violation of the UN Charter and Security Council resolutions on counterterrorism.”
The statement added that Damascus has on occasions pointed to Ankara’s support for terrorist group operating inside Syria and undermining the country’s stability and security, and would like to inform the UN Security Council as well as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon about the Turkish government’s clear and open support for anti-Damascus militants.
The Turkish move, it said, allowed scores of terrorists to cross the border and infiltrate into the cities of Idlib and Jisr al-Shughur and the village of Eshtabraq in the past few days.
It further said that “terrorist networks, including Jabhat al-Nusra which the Turkish government provided with training and weapons, committed massacre two days ago in Eshtabraq, with terrorists slaughtering around 200 civilians, most of them women and children.”
The Syrian Foreign Ministry also called upon the Security Council to exercise its authority, stop the ‘Turkish aggression, and take punitive measures against Turkey’s violation of counterterrorism resolutions.’
Last week, foreign-backed Takfiri militants, including those from al-Nusra Front, took over the key northwestern city of Jisr al-Shughur. They captured Idlib, which lies near the Turkish border, last month.
Syria has been grappling with a deadly crisis since March 2011. The violence fueled by Takfiri groups has so far claimed the lives of over 222,000 people, according to the so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Over 3.8 million Syrians have left their country since the beginning of the crisis. More than 7.2 million Syrians have also become internally displaced, according to the United Nations.
