Turkish media and several Turkish journalistic accounts on X social media report that riots have erupted in the Al Bab, Azez and Al Rai regions of northern Syria against the presence of Turkish forces who have controlled the area since 2016.

According to the same sources, armed protesters attacked trucks with Turkish license plates and two branches of the Turkish Post Office (PTT). They also took down Turkish flags, which they set on fire or destroyed, while demanding that only the Syrian flag used by the opposition and the Free Syrian Army be used. Related videos are being rebroadcast by Turkish and Syrian social media accounts.

According to information from the opposition Turkish television station Halk TV, Turkey has closed its border with Syria.

Recent indications of a potential “imminent understanding” between Ankara and Assad in Damascus are assessed as “one of the reasons for the attacks against the Turkish presence in the region”.

The reason, however, was the riots that developed for hours last night in Caesarea, central Turkey, with successive attacks against Syrian refugees and their property, after information circulated in the city that a Syrian refugee attempted to sexually abuse a 5-year-old girl, with whom he is reportedly related. relationship.

For yesterday’s incidents, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the opposition and “the xenophobic hate speech it cultivates against refugees”, stressing that “violence is unacceptable, hate speech cannot be used for political gains”.

Turkish Interior Minister Ali Gerlikaya said that 67 people were arrested in connection with the incidents in Caesarea and that these people committed inhumane and illegal acts and caused damage to properties belonging to Syrians.