Prime Minister of Turkey RecepTayyip Erdogan on 13 May said Turkey would “not refrain” from responding to twin car bombings it has blamed on Syria but also said the government would be cautious and not be drawn into its neighbour’s civil war. Saturday’s powerful bombings at a border town that is a main hub for Syrian refugees and rebels, was the bloodiest attack in Turkey in recent years. It escalated tensions between the two former allies and raised fears the conflict in Syria could engulf Turkey. The official death toll in the attacks stood at 46.Turkish authorities said they had detained nine Turkish citizens with links to the Syrian intelligence agency in connection with the attacks, including a suspected ringleader. Erdogan said Turkey had no doubt about Syria’s involvement and called Syria’s denial a lie.
Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama met Erdogan on 15 May as world leaders scramble to find a way to ease Bashar Assad from power and end Syria’s bloody civil war. The talks came a day before another key player in the drama, Russian President Vladimir Putin, was to meet UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and after UN members voted to condemn the “escalation” by Assad’s forces.