ISTANBUL // Tensions between Turkey and Syria rose yesterday as Ankara accused Damascus of waging war against fellow Muslims and Turkish pilgrims reported they had been attacked in Syria by government soldiers.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish prime minister, noted in a speech in Istanbul yesterday that Syrian President Bashar Al Assad has vowed to "fight to the death" to preserve his regime.
"Will you fight against your Muslim brothers?" Mr Erdogan said.
In his sharpest criticism against Mr Al Assad yet, Mr Erdogan said the Syrian president's efforts to crush an eight-month rebellion were unacceptable and would fail. The Turkish prime minister, who leads a religiously conservative government and is known as a devout Muslim, laced his remarks with religious overtones.
"We absolutely do not see it as human that in Syria people seeking their rights and demanding a more humane life are met by tanks, artillery and firearms," Mr Erdogan said. "It is impossible for us to accept that people who are praying in the same direction, who believe in Allah and His prophet, are killed in this way."
Mr Erdogan predicted that Mr Al Assad's days in power were numbered. "You can remain in power with tanks and cannons only up to a certain point. One day you will go."
"Sooner or later, the oppressed will win," the prime minister said.
After trying to convince Mr Al Assad to introduce reforms, Turkey turned away from the regime in the summer and started to give support to the Syrian opposition in exile. The leadership of a group of Syrian army deserters fighting the regime, the Free Syrian Army (FSA), is also based in Turkey.
Ankara's change of tack has angered the Syrian government. Last week, Turkish diplomatic missions in Syria were attacked by supporters of Mr Al Assad.
As Mr Erdogan spoke, a group of Turkish pilgrims travelling home from Mecca said their buses had come under attack in Syria. "There is an incident. We are looking into it," a Turkish foreign ministry source told The National.
Turkish media quoted the ministry as saying the attack had occurred at a check point in Syria, a fact that could point to an involvement of security forces, but there was no official statement on the issue.
One of the bus drivers, Erhan Surmeli, also said soldiers carried out the attack. He told the Associated Press that "Syrian soldiers emerged from behind sandbags and cursed Erdogan when we told them we were Turks. Then they suddenly opened fire at the bus."
An opposition umbrella group, the Local Coordination Committees (LCC), said in a statement that two buses had come under fire. The group published a video online showing the aftermath of the attack, the AFP news agency reported.
The LCC said Syrian "military and security forces" had carried out the attack.
One of the pilgrims, Cemil Karli, told the Turkish Anadolu news agency that the convoy of eight or nine buses was stopped by four people travelling in a red car. "They opened fire, and when they saw we were trying to go on, another four emerged and opened fire as well," Mr Karli said: He said he did not know who the attackers were.
Mr Karli and a bus driver were injured in the attack between the Syrian cities of Hama and Homs. Mr Karli said the driver of the bus he was travelling in stepped on the gas and that the vehicle passed through the row of assailants, reaching Turkey without another stop.
The NTV news channel reported that 15,000 Turkish pilgrims were expected to return from Mecca through Syria.
The reported bus attack coincided with deadly early morning raids by Syrian security forces on Homs, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and LCC said.
"Two people were killed and seven others were wounded in Homs while two others died and eight were wounded in [nearby] Qusair by gunfire during raids on Monday morning by the army and security forces," said the Observatory. The military also raided the towns of Karnaz, Latalmleh and Kafar Nabude in the central province of Hama, the Britain-based group added.
Dozens of military vehicles carried troops into Idlib province near the border with Turkey, where heavy machine-gun fire was heard in the village of Ehseen and telephone lines were cut, the Observatory said.
The LCC said that as many as five people, including a Saudi national, were killed in Homs. The LCC, which organises opposition activists on the ground across Syria, said that a similar security operation was conducted in the city of Hama.
tseibert@thenational.ae
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
Company profile
Company: Verity
Date started: May 2021
Founders: Kamal Al-Samarrai, Dina Shoman and Omar Al Sharif
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Size: four team members
Stage: Intially bootstrapped but recently closed its first pre-seed round of $800,000
Investors: Wamda, VentureSouq, Beyond Capital and regional angel investors
More on animal trafficking
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The specs
The specs: 2019 Audi Q8
Price, base: Dh315,000
Engine: 3.0-litre turbocharged V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 340hp @ 3,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm @ 2,250rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 6.7L / 100km
How to improve Arabic reading in early years
One 45-minute class per week in Standard Arabic is not sufficient
The goal should be for grade 1 and 2 students to become fluent readers
Subjects like technology, social studies, science can be taught in later grades
Grade 1 curricula should include oral instruction in Standard Arabic
First graders must regularly practice individual letters and combinations
Time should be slotted in class to read longer passages in early grades
Improve the appearance of textbooks
Revision of curriculum should be undertaken as per research findings
Conjugations of most common verb forms should be taught
Systematic learning of Standard Arabic grammar
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: CVT auto
Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km
On sale: now
Price: from Dh195,000
The%20specs
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What is graphene?
Graphene is extracted from graphite and is made up of pure carbon.
It is 200 times more resistant than steel and five times lighter than aluminum.
It conducts electricity better than any other material at room temperature.
It is thought that graphene could boost the useful life of batteries by 10 per cent.
Graphene can also detect cancer cells in the early stages of the disease.
The material was first discovered when Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov were 'playing' with graphite at the University of Manchester in 2004.
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
OPINIONS ON PALESTINE & ISRAEL
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
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