Turkish president: Syria experiencing 'worst-case scenarios'
As shelling continued across the Turkey-Syria border, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said Monday Turkey would do anything necessary to protect itself, and bloodshed in Syria would only stop with action from the international community.
Smoke rises after a mortar bomb fired from Syria landed in Turkish soil on the Turkish-Syrian border in southern Hatay province October 8. Turkey's military launched a retaliatory strike, a Turkish state official told Reuters. It was the sixth consecutive day of Turkish retaliation against bombardment from the Syrian side of the border, where President Bashar al-Assad's forces are battling rebels.
Aykut Unlupinar/Reuters
Guvecci, Turkey
Turkish President聽聽said on Monday the "worst-case scenarios" were now playing out in聽听补苍诲听聽would to do everything necessary to protect itself, while its聽聽fired back for a sixth day after a shell fired from聽聽flew over the border.
Gul said the violence in聽's southern neighbour, where a revolt against President聽聽has evolved into a civil war that threatens to draw in regional powers, could not go on indefinitely and Assad's fall was inevitable.
"The worst-case scenarios are taking place right now in聽聽... Our government is in constant consultation with the聽. Whatever is needed is being done immediately as you see, and it will continue to be done," Gul said.
"There will be a change, a transition sooner or later ... It is a must for the international community to take effective action before聽聽turns into a bigger wreck and further blood is shed, that is our main wish," he told reporters in聽.
's armed forces have bolstered their presence along the 900 km (560 mile) border with聽聽in recent days and have been responding in kind to gunfire and shelling spilling across from the south, where Assad's forces have been battling rebels who control swathes of territory.
U.N. 厂别肠谤别迟补谤测-骋别苍别谤补濒听聽said the escalation of the conflict along the聽-聽border, as well as the impact of the crisis on聽, were "extremely dangerous".
"The situation in聽聽has dramatically worsened. It is posing serious risks to the stability of聽's neighbours and the entire region," he told a conference in聽,听.
Ban said U.N. and聽听别苍惫辞测听聽would be heading back to the region this week.
The exchanges with聽聽are the most serious cross-border violence in聽's revolt against Assad, which began in March last year with peaceful protests for reform and has evolved into a civil war with sectarian overtones.
Fighting further inside聽聽also intensified on Monday.
Syrian forces advanced for the first time in months into the rebel-held聽聽district in the besieged central city of聽, one of 12 districts they have been bombarding for days.
"They have occupied buildings that we were stationed in and we had to evacuate," a rebel fighter told Reuters by Skype.
Skirmishes on the Syrian side of the border have been intensifying and it is unclear who fired the shells that have crossed into聽.
聽has said it fired into聽聽accidentally, but has failed to live up to pledges made last week, after a Syrian shell killed five civilians in the Turkish town of Akcakale, to ensure no more ordnance flies across the border.
聽launched its latest retaliatory strike on Monday after a mortar bomb fired from聽聽landed in countryside in the Turkish province of聽, a Turkish official told Reuters.
The mortar round landed 150-200 metres inside the Turkish district of聽聽at about 3 p.m. (1200 GMT), the official said.
TRUCKS PATROLLING
Further east, Syrian rebel sources in聽聽province, which borders Akcakale, said they had seen five聽聽trucks full of soldiers patrolling the Turkish side of the border.
NATO 尘别尘产别谤听聽was once an ally of Assad's but turned against him after his violent response to the uprising, in which activists say 30,000 people have now died.
聽has nearly 100,000 Syrian refugees in camps on its territory, has allowed rebel leaders sanctuary and has led calls for Assad to quit. Its armed forces are far larger than聽's.
Turkish Foreign Minister聽聽said at the weekend that a potential leader in an interim聽聽could be Vice-President聽.
Reports in August said Shara, a former foreign minister who was appointed vice president six years ago, had tried to defect to neighbouring聽, but Syrian state media subsequently said he had never considered leaving.
"The opposition is inclined to accept these names. Farouq al-Shara has the ability to understand the system of the last 20-30 years," Davutoglu told the state broadcaster聽.
"聽did not get involved in the recent incidents, the massacre, in a very wise and conscientious attitude. But perhaps there is nobody who knows the system better than al-Shara."