Mick Hartley

A Turkey-Israel confrontation draws a step nearer. From the Jerusalem Post:

President Tayyip Erdogan warned on Wednesday that Turkey had the power and ability to "crush" all terrorists in Syria, including Islamic State and Kurdish militants, while urging all countries to "take their hands off" Syria.

According to Anadolu, Erdogan also called on Israel to halt its "aggressive actions" towards Syria: "Starting with Israel, the forces attacking Syrian territories must immediately put an end to their aggressive actions. Otherwise, the consequences will have a negative impact on everyone."

In other words, this is now our domain. We, the Turks, are in charge and decide what's best for Syria – and that means, first of all, the destruction of the Kurds.

Since last month's fall of Bashar al-Assad, Turkey has said repeatedly it was time for the Kurdish YPG militia to disband. Ankara considers the group, which spearheads the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), as a terrorist organization.

Ankara has said the new Syrian administration must be given an opportunity to address the YPG presence, but also threatened to mount a new cross-border operation against the militia based in northeast Syria if its demands are not met.

Speaking in parliament, Erdogan said the YPG was the biggest problem in Syria now, and added that the group would not be able to escape its inevitable end unless it lays down its arms.