President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has said that Turkey is closely monitoring the advances of Syrian opposition groups as the Syrian government has lost significant territory recently.
"As of now, Idlib, Hama, and Homs... and of course, the target is Damascus. The opposition's march is continuing at this moment. We are following this closely, both through intelligence and media sources," the president told reporters after Friday prayers in İstanbul. "Our wish is that this march continues without a hitch."
This was the first time that a Turkish official openly expressed support for the armed groups' recent offensive which has resulted in significant gains. However, later in his speech, Erdoğan departed from his earlier view: "As you may recall, we called on Assad to meet with us. We suggested that we come together and determine Syria's future. Unfortunately, we did not receive a positive response from Assad.
"Idlib is already done. Hama and Homs are also at the hands of the opposition. Now an advancement towards Damascus is in question. Overall, these troubled marches going on in the region are not what we desire. Our hearts do not wish for this."
— İdlib, Hama ve Humus hedef tabii Şam. Muhaliflerin bu yürüyüşü şu an itibarıyla devam ediyor
— Anadolu Ajansı (@anadoluajansi) December 6, 2024
— Biz de bunun gerek istihbarat gerek bütün medyadan takibini yapıyoruz
— Temennimiz kazasız belasız bir şekilde Suriye'deki bu yürüyüş devam etsin
Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan, Hz. Ali… pic.twitter.com/HaI6NSGZmo
Bahçeli says Assad must talk to Erdoğan to save his country
The opposition groups led by the jihadist Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and also including the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), launched a major offensive in Syria’s Idlib countryside on Nov 27. Within just a few days, they seized all of Idlib province and Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo. On Dec 5, opposition forces captured the city of Hama, and they are now advancing toward Homs, which remains the only government stronghold between the capital of Damascus and the country’s Mediterranean coast.
Back to square one in Syria
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