Israel and Turkey have recently held secret discussions aimed at establishing a military coordination mechanism in Syria, according to a report Tuesday by Middle East Eye, citing two Western sources.
The talks come in the wake of Israeli airstrikes last week on military targets in Syria, including the Hama and Tiyas (T4) air bases—one of which Turkey reportedly planned to deploy troops to in the near future.
According to the report, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified the strikes by stating that Israel had a “narrow window of opportunity” to act before Turkish forces entered the base. Once Turkish troops were on the ground, any Israeli military action could have been interpreted as an attack on a NATO ally—potentially sparking a direct confrontation with Ankara.
Sources warned that even an accidental Israeli strike on a site housing Turkish forces could dramatically escalate tensions. Conversely, Turkish deployment of air defense systems in those same bases could restrict Israel’s freedom of operation in Syrian airspace and serve as a deterrent to future Israeli missions.
