Torygraph:
Syria descends further into open warfare with clashes on Turkish border
Syria descended further into open warfare with armed clashes in the south and on its border with Turkey yesterday, with state media additionally pointing to the involvement of Turkish armed forces.
In one of the most serious clashes to date, the Syrian authorities said they had repelled an incursion by 35 "armed terrorists" over the border in the province of Idlib. They claimed some were wounded, and were ferried away from the battle by Turkish military vehicles to Turkish army aid stations. "The border guards forces suffered no injuries or losses," the state news agency said. "They warned they would stop anyone who even thinks of touching Syria's security or its citizens."
Turkey has provided a base and diplomatic cover to the Free Syrian Army, a growing band of defectors, and it is unlikely that an open attack with such a large group of men could have been planned without their awareness. That alone is enough to draw the two former allies closer to open war, though both are likely to try to avoid it. Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey's foreign minister, has already admitted he considers that a buffer zone inside Syria for refugees from the fighting might have to be considered, with outside military intervention if necessary.
A widening and increasingly dangerous rift is forming between the main strategic alliances in the region. Iran and its allied militia in Lebanon, Hizbollah, are remaining loyal to Mr Assad but Hamas, another Damascus-based militant group, is making its unease clear.
Hassan Nasrallah, Hizbollah's leader, made his first public appearance in three years, at a rally to mark the Shia Muslim festival of Ashura in Beirut. He said he stood by Mr Assad as a fellow struggler in the "resistance" and said that America, the Satan, was trying to overthrow him to make up for defeat in Iraq. "A message to all those who are conspiring against the resistance and banking on change: we will never let go of our arms," he said. "We are tens of thousands of trained fighters, who are all ready to die." That contains more than a hint that success in what both he and Iran see as a western-backed attempt to undermine Mr Assad could lead to retaliatory attacks, most probably against Hizbollah's stated foe, Israel.
The overthrow of Mr Assad would prove an existential threat to his organisation. Burhan Ghalioun, the leader of the opposition Syrian National Council, has said a new Syria would break ties with Hizbollah and also its strategic alliance with Iran, further isolating it and cutting off its immediate access to the militant group, which it funds and supplies. "The so-called Syrian National Council, formed in Istanbul, and its leader Burhan Ghalioun are trying to present their credentials to the United States and Israel," Mr Nasrallah said.
The United States, meanwhile, said it was returning its ambassador, Robert Ford, to Damascus. France also announced Eric Chevallier, its ambassador would return.
The Free Syrian Army is already engaged in confrontation with regular troops across the country. There has been repeated fighting this week in the town of Dael, near the border with Jordan. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a London-based organisation, said that rebels had been trying to prevent the army entering the town to make arrests.