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Syrian government forces prepared to confront any possible Turkish aggression: Army

Wednesday, 27 July 2022 5:24 AM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 27 July 2022 5:48 AM ]

In this file picture, Syrian troops celebrate as they take the village of Haydariya as part of a push to cut supply lines to foreign-sponsored Takfiri militants in the strategic Qusayr area of Homs province. (By AFP)

The General Command of the Syrian Army and Armed Forces says the Arab country’s government troops are fully prepared to respond intensely to any possible Turkish offensive, amid President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s renewed threats of a new military operation in northern Syria.

“In the wake of an upsurge in attacks by Turkish military forces on Syrian territories over the past two days and shelling on different neighborhoods and a number of [Syrian] army positions, we reiterate that our valiant army is ready to confront any possible aggression by the Turkish regime and its allied militants,” Syria’s official news agency SANA cited an unnamed Syrian military source as saying in a statement.

#الجيش يؤكد استعداده للتصدي لأي عدوان محتمل من قبل النظام التركيhttps://t.co/3j8AMm10SL
— الوكالة العربية السورية للأنباء - سانا (@SanaAjel) July 26, 2022

Last week, Erdogan said Ankara's plan for a new military offensive in northeast Syria against members of the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) will remain on the agenda until security concerns are addressed.

Back on July 19, the Turkish president earned a rebuke for his push for the offensive from Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, whose country has been helping Syria in its anti-terror campaign, in a bilateral meeting.

Any military action in northern Syria to harm entire region, benefit terrorists: Leader tells Turkey

Ayatollah Khamenei warns that any military action in northern Syria will definitely harm Turkey, Syria and the entire region and will benefit terrorists.

Ayatollah Khamenei told Erdogan that any Turkish offensive on Syria would be “detrimental” to Syria, Turkey itself, and the entire region, calling for the issue to be resolved through dialog between Ankara, Damascus, Moscow, and Tehran.

Moscow has also previously called on Ankara to “refrain” from an attack.

Erdogan on May 23 signaled a new Turkish cross-border operation in northern Syria with the declared aim of creating a 30-kilometer (18.6-mile) wide safe zone along Turkey’s border with Syria.

He did not provide further details but said the operation would be launched as soon as military, intelligence, and security forces have completed their preparations.

Turkey has deployed forces in Syria in violation of the Arab country's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Ankara-backed militants were deployed to northeastern Syria in October 2019 after Turkish military forces launched a long-threatened cross-border invasion in a declared attempt to push YPG fighters away from border areas.

Turkish military strikes Syrian villages with missiles, artillery shells

The occupying Turkish military takes the Western Syrian province of Aleppo’s villages under heavy bombardment.

Ankara views the YPG as a terrorist organization tied to the homegrown Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been seeking an autonomous Kurdish region in Turkey since 1984.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and other senior officials have said Damascus will respond through all legitimate means available to Turkey's ongoing ground offensive.

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www.presstv.co.uk