Turkey Warns Syria Leaders to Meet People's Demands
Turkey's foreign minister warned embattled leaders in Syria and other Middle East countries on Monday that those who cannot meet their people's demands "will go".
Ahmet Davutoglu spoke a day after Ankara expressed outrage after attacks on its diplomatic missions in Syria by pro-regime protesters and summoned the country's envoy.
"Those in the Middle East who are not at peace with their people and cannot satisfy them will go," Davutoglu told a parliament committee, adding that Turkey would "take a very firm stand" in the wake of the attacks.
On Saturday night, thousands of protesters carrying knives and batons attacked Turkey's diplomatic missions, furious over Ankara's support for an Arab League decision to suspend Syria, state-run news agency Anatolia reported.
In Aleppo, protesters managed to break into the consulate building, while in Damascus they pelted the embassy building with stones, plastic bottles and tear gas shelling, which the police used to disperse the crowd.
No one was injured in the attacks; however Turkey decided to evacuate the families of diplomats and non-essential personnel from Syria.
On Sunday the Turkish foreign ministry said in a statement, "The attitude of the Syrian government ... demonstrates the need for the international community to respond with a united voice to the serious developments in Syria".
Also on Sunday Davutoglu met members of Syria's opposition National Council, the country's largest and most representative opposition grouping, who requested permission to set up a representative office in Turkey.
A Turkish diplomat who declined to be named said Ankara was considering the request.
Davutoglu also said Monday he regretted that mediation bids since the start of the unrest in Syria early this year had failed.
"We have done everything (to avoid) that no blood is shed ... So that our friendship with this country with which we share a 910-kilometre-long border is strengthened," he added.
He also said Turkey was backing people's demands in the Middle East for their rights.
"We support the demands of people who rise up for their rights," he said. "Turkey cannot just watch when universal rights are spurned."
Ankara, once a close ally to Syrian leader Bashar Assad, has for months expressed frustration at his failure to listen to his people, whose almost daily pro-democracy rallies have been met with violent repression, at a cost of 3,500 lives, mostly civilians, according to the U.N.
Source: Agence France Presse
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