Tag: Syrian Opposition

Turkey sets terms for backing Free Syrian Army: Bow to Muslim Brotherhood group

Special to WorldTribune.com

WASHINGTON — Turkey, aligned to the Muslim Brotherhood, has cracked

down on the rebel army in Syria.

Opposition sources said the government of Prime Minister Recep Erdogan

has frozen Free Syrian Army bank accounts in an effort to pressure

the rebels to recognize the authority of the Brotherhood-aligned Syrian

National Council.

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan. /Adem Altan/AFP/Getty Images

“The popularity of the Free Syrian Army inside Syria is a sore issue with Erdogan and the MB,” the Reform Party of Syria said. “From a strategic point of view, control of the Free Syrian Army by the MB is an essential component for which it must not fail.”

The Washington-based opposition movement asserted that Ankara imposed sanctions on FSA on Nov. 30 after the secular rebel army refused to take orders from SNC. FSA, based in Turkey, was said to be entirely dependent on Ankara for safe haven of its fighters as well as training and logistics.

The sources said FSA attacks on Syrian military installations and

convoys increased the credibility of the rebel force, particularly with NATO. They said Britain and France were persuaded to cooperate with FSA, which consists of thousands of deserters from the Syrian Army.

For its part, SNC has been strongly supported by Arab opponents of

Assad. They were said to include Qatar and Saudi Arabia, deemed primary

financiers of the revolt in Syria.

“Tensions are also rising over the little financial aid the FSA is

getting from Saudi Arabia and Qatar whose aim is to control the organization

to serve the MB,” RPS, which supports the secular opposition, said.

In late November, Turkey hosted the first meeting of the leadership of

FSA and SNC. Following the session in the southwestern town of Hatay, SNC

said FSA agreed to end all but defensive operations in Syria.

RPS president Farid Ghadry said SNC contains elements of the Palestinian

insurgency group Hamas. Ghadry cited Ahmed Ramadan, identified as a leading

operative and, until May, news director of the Hamas television

station in Beirut.

“Ahmed Ramadan today is one of the behind-the-scene operatives of the

SNC providing capital, logistics and advice,” RPS said. “That’s a known and

public fact to many Syrians, including two RPS supporters who attended the

first meeting.”

RPS said Turkey has directed French military aid to Islamic fighters who

posed as defectors from FSA. RPS said Erdogan sought to recruit Western

support for the Brotherhood, targeted as a future proxy for Turkey in Syria.

“The MB military wing would become Turkey’s proxy against the Kurds,”

RPS said.

via Turkey sets terms for backing Free Syrian Army: Bow to Muslim Brotherhood group | World Tribune.

December 9, 2011
Syrians in Turkey eye uncertain future

By Justin Vela

The Daily Star

ISTANBUL: Normally, Issa does not like big cities such as Istanbul. But conditions are anything but normal in his native Syria, where Bashar Assad’s forces continue a brutal nine-month crackdown on opposition that has left over 4,000 people dead, according to the latest United Nations estimates.

Issa – who did not wish to give his full name for fear of reprisals against himself or his family – arrived in Istanbul in August having fled Syria after attending three opposition demonstrations in Damascus and transporting an injured protester to safety after he was hit by a tear gas canister.

Issa, who had previously worked as an Arabic teacher for foreigners in Damascus said there was no longer any work in Syria with the exodus of foreign language students.

After searching for employment in Turkey’s vast unofficial economy, he eventually began to build up a pool of students to teach Arabic and rented a room in Istanbul.

“There are many, many Syrians here, moving around [in Istanbul], he said. “Some leave because they can’t find jobs here, and don’t speak Turkish,” Issa added.

For Syrians such as Issa, Istanbul is merely an escape.

For others, the city has become a staging ground to shape Syria’s future with various Syrian opposition groups using the city as a base to coordinate activities inside Syria.

Most Syrians contacted for this article declined interview requests, citing security concerns.

Many were in Istanbul without government permission and did want their activities described.

But three Syrian men described their frustration following the news of violence in Syria and concern for their families there.

“We don’t really feel like we are outside because all our families are inside [Syria],” said Bekes-who had lived in Istanbul for six years.

Yilmaz Saeed, one of the few Kurdish members of the Syrian National Council, an umbrella civilian opposition organization based in Paris, said he is concerned about the lack of discussion over the future of minorities in a post-Assad Syria.

“The future of Syria does not guarantee the [rights of] minorities,” he said, describing how he was trying to advance the Kurdish voice in the SNC.

“We could come back to the same point, it could be the same.”

Another Kurd, a businessman named Bahzad, added that while Syrians were “everywhere” in Istanbul, Syrian Kurds faced more difficulties than Arabs.

“The Turkish government really has a problem with Kurds,” according to Bahzad.

Only Saeed said he planned to return. “Most of Syria is still quiet. When is Damascus and Aleppo going to join?” he asked.

“The Kurds joined on the first day, the Kurds actually started protesting in 2004. The Syrian revolution started in 2004. The others did not join [then], it was only the Kurds.”

The influx has some worried that the unrest next door is spilling over the border.

“Damascus is already in Istanbul,” wrote Kerim Balci, a columnist at the Turkey’s daily Today’s Zaman, following a Nov. 30 shooting inside the Topkapi Palace – a popular Istanbul tourist destination – by a Libyan gunman allegedly driving a car with Syrian license plates on the same day that Ankara announced that was slapping sanctions on Damascus.

“Turkey is in the Middle East … The artificiality of the political borders in this region holds, not only for the political authorities, but also for social and economic problems. A prolonged social unrest in Syria will certainly have repercussions for Turkey,” Balci added.

While he felt generally accepted by the Turks, Issa claimed that most had little understanding of the events taking place in Syria.

“The Turks do not seem to have a very good idea what’s going on,” he said. “They are always just asking about [Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdogan. They give me the thumbs and say, ‘Erdogan or Assad?’”

Still, Istanbul is a fresh start for him. He has begun sending some money back to his family who does not support the regime, but are too scared to join demonstrations. They stay inside their house, he said.

His father no longer has work and their savings are running out.

But now he faces a new challenge: His passport will soon expire and other Syrians have warned him against going to the Syrian Consulate to have it renewed.

“They will keep an eye on me [if I go there],” he said. “What I am doing … and if I am against the regime, they will do something against my family. That’s not just in Istanbul, it’s all of Europe.”

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Daily Star on December 08, 2011, on page 8.

via THE DAILY STAR :: News :: Middle East :: Syrians in Turkey eye uncertain future.

December 8, 2011
Turkey’s Involvement In Syria Raises the Stakes For Its Government

Turkey’s Involvement In Syria Raises the Stakes For Its Government

Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 8 Issue: 211

November 15, 2011

By: Saban Kardas

Turkey has accelerated its contact with the Syrian opposition, while maintaining its criticism of the regime’s ongoing violent crackdown on the uprising. This development is in parallel to the growing involvement of the Arab League in the Syrian uprising. A recent deal agreed between the Arab League and Damascus heightened expectations for ending the months-long bloodshed. However, in a move reminiscent of the Baath regime’s delaying tactics while Turkey was seeking to convince President Bashar al-Assad to heed protesters’ calls earlier this year, the Syrian security forces continued their violent campaign even after the deal was announced. This reckless behavior prompted the Arab League to suspend Syria from membership. Rather than backing down in the face of growing regional isolation, the Baath regime preferred to launch a verbal assault on fellow Arab nations, accusing them of pursuing a very dangerous course of action (www.aljazeera.com, November 14).

Pro-regime protestors have attacked several diplomatic representations, which included attacks on the Turkish embassy in Damascus by a crowd of 1,000, and on consulates in Aleppo and Latkia. In response, the Turkish government issued an official protest, evacuated the families of diplomats, asked its citizens not to travel to Syria, and summoned the Syrian charge d’affaires in Ankara (www.mfa.gov.tr, November 13). While the Syrian Foreign Minister, Waled al-Moallem, issued an apology for the attacks, this did not prevent his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu from arguing that Turkey would adopt a “decisive attitude” against these attacks and continue to support “the Syrian people’s rightful struggle” (Today’s Zaman, November 14).

These developments lend support to the arguments of the Syrian opposition. The opposition for a long time broke ranks with the Damascus regime, making clear that they would not settle for political reforms alone and their struggle would continue until Assad relinquishes power (EDM, June 7). In the intervening period, the opposition has been working hard to gain international recognition, and generate larger international momentum behind the military option – similar to the Libyan case.

In the aftermath of these recent events, Davutoglu met with the Syrian National Council, a group seeking to form a united front against the Syrian regime, which reportedly asked for permission to open an office in Turkey (Anadolu Ajansi, November 13). Previously, Turkey had hosted several meetings of the opposition groups, and Davutoglu had also received representatives from the Syrian opposition (Sabah, October 18). Moreover, Turkey has provided shelter to refugees fleeing the crackdown in tents inside Turkish border. At the same time, Ankara has imposed an arms embargo on Damascus and expressed its readiness to impose further sanctions.

With these courageous steps and Turkish leaders’ constant calls on the Syrian regime to listen to the people’s voice, Turkey has emerged at the forefront of international efforts for pro-democratic regime change in the country. Normally, Turkey’s pursuit of such a policy might have jeopardized its ties to other authoritarian Arab nations in the region, but given the increasing number of deaths in Syria, even monarchies in the region have asked Assad to leave power. Thus, the recent toughening of the Arab League’s position eases Turkey’s restraint in this unfolding crisis, as it provides a regional endorsement for its actions. Turkey is also acting in close coordination with the Arab League.

However, there is a strong body of opinion in Turkey critical of the government’s increasingly vocal confrontation with Syria. For many analysts, this new state of affairs in relations with Syria marks an obvious weakness in the government’s “zero problems with neighbors” policy, under which Turkey had sought to forge closer relations with Damascus and other capitals in surrounding regions. The fact that Turkey is on the brink of going to war against a leader with whom Turkish leaders had established a close friendship is seen as an indication of the failure of Turkey’s Middle Eastern policy.

Another line of criticism argues that the government is going too far in its stance on the Syrian regime and its decision to support the opposition. They question the prudence of extending shelter to the opposition groups of a neighboring country, which contradicts Turkey’s established state traditions, and argue that if Assad succeeds in surviving this challenge, Ankara will be left with no options to maintain normal relations with Damascus. Yet another criticism presents the Syrian uprising as being orchestrated by Western powers to change the political map of the region. In that view, Turkey’s assertive policy is also part of the same plan and is imposed upon it by Western powers. This somewhat conspiratorial thinking is at times raised even by members of the main opposition, the Republican People’s Party (Cihan, November 10).

While defending the government’s policy during a parliamentary hearing on his ministry’s budget, Davutoglu rebuked such allegations of “subcontracting.” Davutoglu defended Turkey’s position by saying that “in foreign policy, we make the plans, set the principles and develop the discourse. Sometimes when this is just and right, it might be in harmony with the United States. Sometimes with Iran … sometimes with Russia … sometimes with the EU. Thus, just because the United Sates is also taking a stance, shall we turn a blind eye to Syria?” Davutoglu justifies Turkey’s policy on humanitarian grounds and rejects any suggestion that Turkey’s “zero problems with neighbors” policy has failed. In this view, Turkey’s solidarity essentially lies with the Syrian people, and in an environment where the regime oppresses unarmed civilians Turkey cannot remain impassive (www.haberturk.com, November 14).

Granted, this new policy raises several security challenges. Since Iran, Russia and China still support Damascus, Turkey risks severing its ties with Iran over this issue (EDM, October 11). Moreover, Assad signaled several times that if Damascus is cornered, there will be extreme repercussions in the region, creating security challenges for all the regional actors. For Turkey, such threats usually bring to mind the issue of Damascus resorting to the “PKK card,” meaning it could use its leverage over some groups within the PKK to accelerate attacks on Turkish civilian and military targets. While President Abdullah Gul and other Turkish officials have warned Syria not to inflame the PKK (Star, November 9), there is no guarantee that Damascus will not choose this option when needed, nor is it clear what instruments Turkey will use to deter Damascus from following that path.

https://jamestown.org/program/turkeys-involvement-in-syria-raises-the-stakes-for-its-government/

November 17, 2011
Turkey has a key role in Syria – now and in the future

The Arab League’s suspension of Syria has outraged Assad, but it is Ankara’s hardline stance that may yet prove decisive

Recep Tayyip Erdogan (centre) 'seems to be positioning himself for a post-Assad future'. Photograph: Adem Altan/AFP/Getty Images

The Arab League’s unexpectedly tough action in suspending Syria, ostracising President Bashar al-Assad, and inviting opposition leaders to talks in Cairo has outraged the regime in Damascus, which suspects a US-led conspiracy to impose forcible regime change. But the increased hostility exhibited by Turkey, Syria’s most powerful and best-connected neighbour, may yet prove decisive as Ankara assumes a crisis leadership role.

Until the uprising tore apart old certainties, the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, had invested considerable capital in improved ties with Syria, with which Turkey almost went to war in the 1990s. A turning point came with the 2004 free trade agreement. This interdependence now gives Turkey significant economic leverage. Ankara has already imposed unilateral sanctions and is considering additional measures including a cut in electricity supplies.

Erdogan turned the screw again this week, accusing Assad personally of “feeding on blood” after he failed to honour the Arab League peace plan. “No regime can survive by killing or jailing,” he said. “No one can build a future over the blood of the oppressed.”

Turkey’s motives are not difficult to discern. Chaos on its fragile southern flank, and Syria’s possible descent into civil war, would be reasons enough to prompt Ankara’s intervention. But Erdogan was also incensed by weekend attacks on Turkey’s embassy in Damascus and regional consulates, apparently orchestrated by the regime. The government issued a formal protest and advised Turks against travel to Syria, a reversal of its proud open-borders policy.

Turkey also appears motivated by a desire to keep ahead of evolving Arab opinion. “It can comfortably be said, in light of recent developments, that the countdown to the end of Syria’s Assad regime has begun,” said Today’s Zaman columnist Bülent Kenes, reflecting official opinion.

With senior Saudi officials and King Abdullah of Jordan openly backing the revolt, and the violence escalating, Erdogan and his foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, who have long harboured regional leadership ambitions, seem to be positioning themselves for a post-Assad future.

In this push towards the Syrian endgame they plainly have the enthusiastic backing of the US, for whom they are effectively acting as a local proxy in opposition to external actors such as the pro-regime Russia. Given Erdogan’s sharp differences with Washington over Israel-Palestine and the Iraq war, this coincidence of view is not lacking in irony. “We very much welcome the strong stance that Turkey has taken and believe it sends a critical message to President Assad that … he should step down,” said Ben Rhodes, Barack Obama’s deputy national security adviser.

In a series of statements, Davutoglu has insisted it is “no longer possible to trust the Syrian government”. Adding provocation to insult, he underscored Ankara’s support for the protesters and specifically for the Syrian National Council, an opposition umbrella group based in Turkey that is seeking recognition from Ankara. “We will continue to take our place at the side of the Syrian people’s rightful struggle,” Davutoglu said.

As bilateral tensions rise, suggestions that Turkey may physically intervene in northern Syria to create a safe haven for civilians displaced by the violence are likely to resurface. Several thousand Syrian refugees are already sheltering inside Turkey, as are numerous Syrian army defectors. Possibly anticipating Syrian retaliation, the newspaper Hürriyet reported that President Abdullah Gül recently warned Assad would pay a heavy price for stirring up trouble in Turkey’s Kurdish south-east.

Fears that a Syrian meltdown could seriously destabilise the wider neighbourhood are also driving Turkey’s hardening response. Such a scenario could affect Iraq, where security concerns are rising as the US withdrawal nears completion, and even Iran, a close Assad ally.

For its part, the Syrian regime has pressing reasons to fear Ankara’s animosity, as Gökhan Bacik pointed out in Today’s Zaman. Unlike many Muslim countries, Turkey identifies strongly with Europe, the US and Nato. And in the past decade, Erdogan’s Justice and Development party has made its brand of moderate Islamist politics acceptable to previously blinkered western eyes.

In other words, Turkey, with its majority Sunni Muslim population, furnishes a role model for the disenfranchised Sunni majority in Syria (and other Arab spring countries). Not only is Ankara encouraging revolution in Damascus, it is also living proof that Assad’s politics of fear are outdated, that Syrians have before them a workable alternative paradigm, and that, after the revolution, the country’s secular, Islamist and other sectarian traditions could fairly hope to co-exist peacefully, Turkish-style.

via Turkey has a key role in Syria – now and in the future | Simon Tisdall | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk.

November 17, 2011
Turkey Puts Syria Sanctions Back on Agenda

By MARC CHAMPION

ISTANBUL—Turkey’s delayed promise to levy sanctions against Syria is back on the agenda, with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan likely to announce them on a visit to refugee camps along the border “soon,” according to a senior Turkish official.

Turkey’s leaders, however, look set to go on moving cautiously even as they talk tough, because of the high domestic and regional high stakes involved, and Saturday’s Arab League decision to turn up the heat on Damascus is unlikely to change that calculus, analysts say.

Turkish officials are playing down the likely scope of any new sanctions, while long-rumored plans to create a military buffer zone inside Syrian territory are off the government’s agenda, “for now,” the Turkish official said.

On Saturday night, pro-regime protesters attacked Turkey’s embassy and consulates in Syria in response to the Arab League’s threat to suspend Syria’s membership and impose sanctions, underlining the extent to which relations between Ankara and Damascus have deteriorated. Turkey isn’t a member of the Arab League.

In a clear message to Damascus, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu responded by calling leaders of the Syrian opposition to meet him in Ankara for talks on Sunday evening. Turkey also sent a plane to evacuate the families of diplomats in Syria, issued a travel advisory against visiting the country and demanded guarantees from Damascus for the safety of its diplomats.

“We strongly condemn the deplorable attacks which took place yesterday night ” the foreign ministry said in a statement.

Until Syria’s President Bashar Al-Assad began a bloody crackdown against protesters eight months ago, Ankara was among his staunchest supporters. That changed dramatically by June, as Damascus ignored Turkish pressure to end the killing.

Ankara has responded by blocking weapons shipments to Syria from Iran and hosting Syria’s opposition leaders as well as commanders of the self-styled Free Syrian Army. But so far it has resisted joining the U.S. and the European Union in imposing broad economic sanctions.

Last month, Mr. Erdogan said he would announce a new package of sanctions when he visited Syrian refugee camps on the Turkish side the 900 kilometer border between the two countries on Oct. 9. The visit was canceled, however, when Mr. Erdogan’s mother died just two days before the planned visit.

Talk of sanctions then disappeared as Ankara became focused on more immediate threats. On October 20, Turkey sent some 10,000 troops to attack militants from the outlawed Kurdish Worker’s party, or PKK, on both sides if Turkey’s border with Iraq. Three days later, a major earthquake hit Van, on Turkey’s border with Iran.

“The prime minister has been planning to go to the camps…but because of the earthquakes, he hasn’t been able to,” said the senior Turkish official, who declined to be named. “He’ll probably make the trip soon, but we don’t yet have a date.”

Ankara’s caution in moving to take tougher action reflects a complex web of risks it faces on its eastern borders, analysts say. These include potential Syrian—and Iranian—support for the PKK, which has been fighting the Turkish state since 1984, at a cost of at least 30,000 lives. Turkey’s President Abdullah Gul has issued Damascus a public warning that consequences would follow should Syria help the PKK.

Meanwhile, Turkish businessmen near the border with Syria have lobbied against broad sanctions, unwilling to lose $2.4 billion in annual trade that has continued despite the unrest in Syria, according to Turkish trade statistics. And Turkish officials worry that broad sanctions could hurt ordinary Syrians, providing Mr. Assad with a propaganda victory.

At the same time, Turkey is trying to manage relations with Iran, as the two countries increasingly vie for influence in the region. But while Mr. Erdogan will likely keep more drastic measures against Damascus in reserve, Turkey is by now committed to removing Mr. Assad, according to Ilter Turan, professor of international relations at Istanbul’s Bilgi University.

That is because “as long as Assad is there, the road for Iran to extend its influence through the Middle East and the Mediterranean is open,” said Mr. Turan.

via Turkey Puts Syria Sanctions Back on Agenda – WSJ.com.

November 14, 2011
Former Iranian FM Urges Turkey Not to Give in to US, EU Pressures

TEHRAN (FNA)- Former Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki called on the Turkish officials to adopt an independent and transparent foreign policy and refrain from complying with the policies dictated by the US and the European countries.

“The Turkish rulers should correct their positions and make their foreign policy transparent before they lose the opportunity,” Mottaki said in an article on Sunday, adding that Turkey is not obliged to obey the US and EU-dictated policies, like what Saudi Arabia is doing.

He blasted Turkey’s position on the developments in Syria, and said Ankara thinks that it can comply with the US and EU aspirations and show paradoxical policies and attitudes through spending its political prestige and reputation.

Mottaki asked if Turkey claims to be an advocate of freedom of speech, why it only alleges to be a supporter of the Syrian people and does not support the Yemeni and Bahraini people’s demonstrations against the tyrannical rule of their governments.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March with organized attacks by well-armed gangs against Syrian police forces and border guards being reported across the country.

Hundreds of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed, when some protest rallies turned into armed clashes.

The government blames outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups for the deaths, stressing that the unrest is being orchestrated from abroad.

But, calm was eventually restored in the Arab state after President Assad started a reform initiative in the country.

Earlier this month, Amin Hatit, a prominent retired Lebanese General and political analyst, said that Syria is now moving towards tranquility and stability, which means that Washington’s interfering policies have failed to undermine Bashar Assad’s government.

Speaking to FNA, Amin Hatit pointed to the decline in the number of unrests in Syria in recent weeks, and said that the Syrian government is now in full control over developments and the country is moving towards full calm and tranquility.

“The US interfering policies in Syrian affairs have sustained a heavy defeat because Washington had pinned much hope on its plots for toppling the Syrian ruling system,” Hatit stated.

via Fars News Agency :: Former Iranian FM Urges Turkey Not to Give in to US, EU Pressures.

November 14, 2011