Turkey vows to block terror threats amid Syrian unrest

The Turkish minister expressed that Ankara opposes any actions that could further destabilize the region and would "never allow terrorist activities against Turkey nor against Syrian civilians," according to the Turkish agency Anatolia. He assured that Turkey supports efforts to reduce tensions in Syria.

Fidan added that to achieve peace in Syria, the "political process" between the regime and the opposition should be completed.

Fighters from the Syrian organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and their allies launched an offensive against government forces on Wednesday. According to press reports on Saturday, rebels took control of Aleppo and continued their advance, with heavy fighting ongoing between government forces and Islamist militants. The air forces of Russia and Syria bombed Aleppo on Saturday. More than 300 people have already died in the fighting.

Reuters noted that the rebels consist of a coalition of Turkish-backed militant groups and the Islamist HTS, considered the opposition's most formidable fighting force.

These are the most serious clashes in Syria since 2020, when Russia and Turkey, which support the rebels, reached an agreement that ended most of the hostilities.

As reported by the Associated Press on Sunday, after taking control of most of Aleppo and the local airport, rebels began occupying towns and villages in the nearby Hama province.

Turkey engaged militarily in Syria in 2016 to pursue its long-term goals—demonstrating power in the region and safeguarding against Kurdish groups. Ankara considers the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK), a separatist group representing Turkish Kurds recognized as a terrorist organization by the EU and the U.S., as a threat, along with the People's Protection Units (YPG) operating in Syria.