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By Khaled Yacoub Oweis and John Irish | Reuters
By Khaled Yacoub Oweis and John Irish | Reuters
"The French have tried to position themselves in a position of leadership, first with Libya and now here," said Hayat Alvi, a lecturer in National Security studies, at the U.S. Naval War College. "Military intervention in Syria is a very different prospect of that in Libya, but we could well see an increase in covert action."
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A day earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan criticised the "cowardice" of Assad, once a close ally, for turning guns on his own people. Erdogan spoke of the fate of defeated dictators from Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini to Muammar Gaddafi, and bluntly told Assad to quit.
In Brussels, an EU diplomat said European Union governments were considering a new range of sanctions against Syria that would bar investment in Syrian banks, trading its government bonds and selling insurance to state bodies.
Gul told a think-tank in London: "We exerted enormous efforts in public and behind closed doors in order to convince the Syrian leadership to lead the democratic transition."
"Violence breeds violence. Now, unfortunately, Syria has come to a point of no return," he said. "Defining this democratic struggle along sectarian, religious and ethnic lines would drag the whole region into turmoil and bloodshed."
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Syrian defectors say they are hopeful that Turkish troops will create a safe haven within Syria. Defectors say they could use such a zone as a staging ground to mount a rebellion.
Turkey is reluctant to take military action across the border but Turkish officials say they could set up a sanctuary on Syrian territory if huge numbers of refugees head for the frontier or if massacres take place in Syrian cities.
Ground forces commander Hayri Kivrikoglu inspected troops near the border on Tuesday, Turkish state television reported.
Syrian deserters and civilians in refugee camps and villages in Turkey close to the frontier say the Syrian army has reinforced its positions in border areas.
"There are tanks in the valleys, hidden among the trees, and they've dug trenches," Syrian refugee Hamid Fayzo told Reuters in the Turkish village of Guvecci, overlooking the border.
[..]
A day earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan criticised the "cowardice" of Assad, once a close ally, for turning guns on his own people. Erdogan spoke of the fate of defeated dictators from Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini to Muammar Gaddafi, and bluntly told Assad to quit.
In Brussels, an EU diplomat said European Union governments were considering a new range of sanctions against Syria that would bar investment in Syrian banks, trading its government bonds and selling insurance to state bodies.
Gul told a think-tank in London: "We exerted enormous efforts in public and behind closed doors in order to convince the Syrian leadership to lead the democratic transition."
"Violence breeds violence. Now, unfortunately, Syria has come to a point of no return," he said. "Defining this democratic struggle along sectarian, religious and ethnic lines would drag the whole region into turmoil and bloodshed."
[..]
Syrian defectors say they are hopeful that Turkish troops will create a safe haven within Syria. Defectors say they could use such a zone as a staging ground to mount a rebellion.
Turkey is reluctant to take military action across the border but Turkish officials say they could set up a sanctuary on Syrian territory if huge numbers of refugees head for the frontier or if massacres take place in Syrian cities.
Ground forces commander Hayri Kivrikoglu inspected troops near the border on Tuesday, Turkish state television reported.
Syrian deserters and civilians in refugee camps and villages in Turkey close to the frontier say the Syrian army has reinforced its positions in border areas.
"There are tanks in the valleys, hidden among the trees, and they've dug trenches," Syrian refugee Hamid Fayzo told Reuters in the Turkish village of Guvecci, overlooking the border.
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