Israeli opinion article says Turkey's Nato protection does not apply to troops in Syria
Israeli opinion article says Turkey's Nato protection does not apply to troops in Syria Submitted by MEE staff on Thu, 08/20/2026 - 19:39 The commentary was published in Israel Hayom, which is owned by the same Israeli mega-donor backing US President Donald Trump Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan walks arm in arm alongside US President Donald Trump at Etimesgut Air Base near Ankara, Turkey,…
An opinion piece in the right-wing Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom argues that any Turkish troops operating in Syria would be unprotected under NATO's collective defense treaty because NATO's Article 5 only applies within member states' borders. The author, Shay Gal, asserts that NATO's Article 5 protects Turkish territory but not Turkish troops deployed abroad.
The piece was published two days after Israeli airstrikes destroyed parts of a disused air force base in northern Syria, where Israel suspected Turkish troops were preparing to enter. Gal explains that Israel has studied NATO's Article 5 and knows its limitations, noting that Turkish troops do not carry Turkish territory with them when deployed in Syria.
The article claims that Israel has targeted Turkish military infrastructure in Syria to prevent Turkey from establishing a military presence in the country. The Israeli government maintains that Turkey's support for Damascus is a threat to Israel's security.
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