'Playing with fire': Israel's Syria strike tests Turkey after Mecca defence pact

'Playing with fire': Israel's Syria strike tests Turkey after Mecca defence pact Submitted by Ragip Soylu on Wed, 08/19/2026 - 12:41 Ankara insiders see the attack as an attempt to undermine the defence pact and send a warning ahead of Erdogan’s planned Damascus visit Anti-government fighters check a Syrian army jet after they took over a military airbase near the central city of Hama, on 6 December 2024 (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP) Off Turkey has sought to downplay Tuesday’s Israeli strikes on the Abu al-Duhur military a