Erdogan denounces Israeli attacks on Syria

Despite his criticism of the Syrian regime, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan denounced the alleged Israeli attacks on Syrian targets that took place during the weekend, AFP reports.

Speaking to a group of Turkish parliamentarians from his party, Erdogan was reported as saying: “No excuse can justify this operation.”

Erdogan has voiced opposition to the Syrian regime since it began killing civilians during the two-year revolution. Turkey has opened its borders to thousands of Syrian refugees who have fled savage crackdowns of their protests.

According to the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet reported Erdogan describing Bashar al-Assad as a “butcher” saying, “God willing, we will see the butcher Assad get his punishment.”