The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement in which it states that before the Iranian attack, the Turkey contacted Iran and the United States, asking for restraint and for responses to be “proportionate”.

In the announcement of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it is mentioned, among other things, that “before the incident” – Iran’s attack on Israel – “we spoke with the Iranian and American authorities and asked for restraint. The mutual expectations and messages of the parties have also been conveyed by Turkey and the necessary initiatives have been taken to ensure that the responses are proportionate.”

The statement also said: “We have long reminded our interlocutors of our warnings about the risk of an extension and escalation of Israel’s ongoing war in Gauze.

“The Israeli attack on his embassy Iran in Damascus, which violated international law, justified our concerns. Iran’s retaliation to this attack and subsequent developments have shown once again that events could quickly escalate into a regional war.”

The Turkish Foreign Ministry’s statement concluded: “Today, we once again send clear messages to the Iranian authorities and the Western countries that have influence over Israel, to urge them all to put an end to the escalation.

“We will continue our efforts to prevent the triggering of a process that will permanently damage the stability of our region and lead to wider global conflicts.

“We are also closely monitoring developments regarding threats to Turkey’s security in consultation with our relevant institutions and President Erdogan is regularly informed.”

At the same time, Iran appears to have informed Turkey in advance of its planned operation against Israel, at least one Turkish diplomatic source told Reuters, adding that the United States had conveyed to Iran through Ankara that its operation should is “within certain limits”.

Earlier on Sunday, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan had a telephone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir Abdullahian.

Turkish diplomatic sources say Hakan Fidan told the Iranian minister that Turkey does not want further escalation in the region following Iran’s retaliation against Israel on the night of April 13 and wants “steps that will increase tension to stop.”

Hossein Amir Abdullahian, for his part, reportedly stated, according to the same sources, that the retaliatory operation against Israel has ended and Iran will not proceed with a new operation unless attacked. If Iran is attacked again, it will respond more strongly this time, Iran’s foreign minister told Hakan Fidan.

After communicating with Abdollahian, Hakan Fidan also had a telephone conversation with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron. The two ministers stressed the need to avoid further escalation in the region, Turkish diplomatic sources said.