Netanyahu Warns Turkey Not to Expand Military Deployment in Syria

Xinhua News Agency, Jerusalem, August 19 (Reporter Feng Guorui, Chen Junqing) Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu stated in an interview on the 19th that Israel will not tolerate Turkey's expansion of military deployments in Syria, especially the related military forces extending to southern Syria and posing a "threat" to Israel.

Netanyahu said that Israel has issued a clear warning to Turkey regarding this matter. He stated, "This message has been conveyed, but clearly they did not take it in, so we will ensure they understand it better."

According to a report by Reuters on the 19th, Roman Goffman, head of the Israeli intelligence and special operations agency (Mossad), had a phone call last week with Assad Hassan Shibani, the foreign minister of the Syrian transitional government, where they discussed Turkey's military presence in Syria. The report noted that this was one of the highest-level contacts between Israel and the new Syrian government since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024.

The Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement on the evening of the 18th, stating that both sides had previously agreed to "maintain the status quo" on security issues, but the Syrian side "allowed Turkish troops to deploy at an airbase near Aleppo, which almost violates this agreement." The Turkish government stated on the 19th that the Israeli accusations are "nonsense."