Israeli Strikes Near Turkish Border Amid Rising Regional Tensions
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The latest incident comes days after reports emerged Israel had struck a military airbase close to the Turkish border, which Syria said threatened to escalate tensions in the region.
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Washington TimesIn the wake of the strikes, which caused damage but no casualties, the office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the base was attacked because Syria was “on the verge of breaching” an agreement by allowing Turkish troops to deploy there.
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In an interview on Friday, the US ambassador to Turkey, Tom Barrack, suggested that the strike could be "the Israelis baiting the Turks" in an attempt to draw Turkey into a conflict ahead of upcoming Israeli elections.
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Washington TimesTom Barrack, who also serves as ambassador to Turkey, said the attack on Tuesday on the Abu Duhur base could have been Israel “baiting the Turks … that was the serious and worrying part.”
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Writing on X, Katz added Israeli forces were acting "in light of clear intelligence information about Turkey's intentions".
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Washington TimesBarrack said it was likely that Israel had intelligence suggesting Turkey may be bolstering its presence in the area and “a commander somewhere in the field made a decision ‘We’re not going to let that happen’… What they didn’t do is tell us or Turkey.”
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Abu Duhur lies around 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of the Turkish border. “When they (the Turkish military) see these jets coming towards the border and they don’t know what the purpose, direction or intention is, they start to say ‘We’re going to have to scramble our own,’” Barrack said as he outlined how close Israel and NATO member Turkey came to direct confrontation.
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BBC NewsAfter the strike Turkey did not confirm whether any of its troops moved to the Abu al-Duhur airbase, which sits 70km from the Turkish border. However, Ankara rejected Israel's suggestion that it posed a threat.
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Turkey has been supporting Syria’s effort to rebuild its armed forces by training Syrian personnel and supplying equipment and logistical support. The two countries signed an agreement last year that formalized their military cooperation.
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BBC NewsThe Turkish military has provided assistance to Syria since the overthrow of Assad, while Israel continues to view both countries with deep suspicion.
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Israel occupies territory in southwest Syria it seized after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in 2024.
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Washington TimesIsrael carried out hundreds of airstrikes around Syria after the fall of Bashar Assad’s government in late 2024. The Israeli military also seized control of a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone in southern Syria, which it continues to occupy.
5 details only one outlet reported
Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.
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01 Reuters Israeli airstrike hits Gaza's Zawayda, causing massive destruction - Reuters Israeli airstrike hits Gaza's Zawayda, causing massive destruction Reuters
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02 PBS NewsHour U.S. ambassador responds to rising tensions between Israel, Turkey and Syria The Israeli military bombed an airbase in Syria, far from the Israeli border, sparking condemnation not only from Syria, but also Turkey and the Trump administration. U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack accused Israel of an "unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability." Nick Schifrin spoke with Barrack to discuss tension.
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03 Washington Times Israel, meanwhile, has remained suspicious of the new authorities in Damascus, led by former Islamist insurgents. Syria’s interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa has said repeatedly that he does not want a conflict with Israel.
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04 BBC News Published Syria has condemned an Israeli attack on the village of Beit Jinn, southwest of the country's capital Damascus, which officials said hit a civilian vehicle and left several people injured.
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05 Democracy Now Israel’s military on Wednesday admitted that its soldiers opened fire in January 2024 on a car trying to flee Gaza City following Israel’s evacuation orders. The car was carrying 5-year-old Palestinian Hind Rajab and six of her relatives. They were all killed, as were Palestine Red Crescent Society medics dispatched to rescue them. The Israeli military said it would also investigate the killing of 15 Palestinian paramedics whose bodies and crushed emergency vehicles were recovered from a mass grave in Rafah in March 2025. It made no mention of thousands of other incidents where Palestinian civilians were killed by Israeli forces.
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Sources (5)
- pbs
- democracynow
- bbc
- washtimes
- reuters