Turkish FM: Assad's Plan B Is 'Ethnic Cleansing'

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Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has accused Syrian President Bashar Assad of resorting to a new strategy of "ethnic cleansing" to create a safe zone for his Alawite sect, in an interview published Wednesday.

"What concerned us about the Banias incident is that (Assad) has switched to a new strategy to reinstate influence by subjecting a certain area to ethnic cleansing," Davutoglu told the Hurriyet newspaper.

He was referring to the Mediterranean city of Banias where rights monitors say dozens of people were killed in attacks in a Sunni neighborhood condemned by the international community.

"This is a so-called Plan B strategy based on sectarian clashes and opening a space or corridor for a certain sect," he said, suggesting Assad was trying to create an all-Alawite zone stretching from the embattled city of Homs to Lebanon.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Tuesday he was appalled by the photographs of children massacred by the regime and called on the UN Security Council to "urgently convene" over the Banias killings.

Davutoglu said Banias was occupying a critical location in the corridor extending to Lebanon.

"This is a dangerous game. This is an ethnic cleansing," he said.

"The goal is to intimidate the residents and to force them to leave. In fact, the majority of one million refugees who fled to Lebanon is Sunnis."

Assad's minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shiite Islam, has dominated Syria for decades.

Sunni-majority Turkey cut contact with Damascus after the regime's deadly crackdown on opponents in a revolt erupted in March 2011.

Ankara has sided with the rebels fighting to topple Assad's regime, taken in around 400,000 refugees as well as army defectors and repeatedly called on the international community to act on the unfolding crisis.

Comments 4
Missing charbel007 08 May 2013, 16:54

Check out hezballah and there shia brothers in action , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VswVRADWQr4

Missing arturo 08 May 2013, 16:55

....and Turkey plans to stand by and watch?

Missing naderelhalabi 09 May 2013, 15:11

Turkey is all talk, nothing else. Even when they claimed to be angry at israel to make themselves seem as principled, they were trading with them more than ever behind the scenes. Dont trust turkey who cant even admit its crimes against the armenians.

Missing naderelhalabi 09 May 2013, 15:09

Josh bustany, shame on you for attacking muslims like this. I sincerly dislike turkish leaders and the arab leaders (and of course israel) but how can you blame islam for those bastards? Neither one of those scum leaders follow islam just like many fake christian leaders dont follow christianity. Remember that the muslim leader omar bin al khattab had a christian man complain to him about how he was beaten by a muslim, his reply was to send for that muslim man and gave the christian his right according to the eye for an eye law to beat him back. Islam is the source of the world problem, people like you are. Christians were allied and protected by muslims for most parts of the islamic union. The only examples of them being treated unfairly comes from times when muslims as well were being treated unfairly when corrupt leaders came along such as during the final years of the ottoman empire. Honestly, what you are doing is evil and truly a favor to israel.