NATO Alerted by Israel Amid Rising Middle East Tensions

On Thursday morning, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz delivered a stern caution to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, accusing him of involving Turkey in “dangerous adventures in Syria” and emphasizing that Israel’s resolve should not be underestimated in this regard.

“Israel will not allow any actor to threaten its security,” Katz wrote on X. “It would be better for Erdoğan to continue his detached-from-reality, fanciful rhetoric against Israel in the Turkish Grand National Assembly than to attempt to test Israel’s determination to defend itself.”

This warning follows Israel’s recent strike on Syria’s Abu al-Duhur Airbase, escalating tensions that Washington is now trying to defuse. The situation places pressure on the U.S., as it seeks to manage the volatile dynamics between Turkey, a NATO ally, and Israel, one of its closest allies in the region. Israel has alleged that Syria was close to violating a security agreement by facilitating Turkish troop presence there, though Turkey staunchly disagrees with this account.

Syria’s government indicated there were no plans for a lasting Turkish military presence or base construction, though Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani acknowledged that Turkish officers had been on-site for training and knowledge-sharing purposes. Turkey’s Defense Ministry also announced that no Turkish military personnel were at the base before or during Israel’s attack, as reported by Reuters.

On Wednesday, Turkey called these allegations from Israel “untenable,” arguing that they are “intended to legitimize Israel’s unlawful airstrikes targeting Syria’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. … The imputations voiced stem from Netanyahu’s intent to pursue expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region ahead of the elections in Israel,” Turkey’s government said in a social media post.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Reuters Thursday that Washington was working on “a de-escalation process” that was already in place but still needed to be refined. Asked whether the dispute could lead to a direct Israeli-Turkish confrontation, Huckabee said, “I don’t think we’re even close to that.” He said Israel viewed Turkey as “moving further south” in Syria and perceived that as potentially threatening.

U.S. Ambassador to Turkey and special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack sounded a sharper warning after the strike. Barrack said Turkey had received no advance notice and could have prepared a military response after detecting Israeli aircraft heading north toward Turkish territory. He said Washington was working to establish a more robust deconfliction mechanism among Turkey, Israel and Syria to prevent miscalculation or an accidental confrontation.

Sinan Ciddi, director of the Turkey Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told News Media that Ankara is portraying the confrontation through a sharply different lens.

“Turkey is chalking up the increasingly escalatory climate between Turkey and Israel to election antics/propaganda by Netanyahu and driving a narrative that Israel does not want stable neighbors and regional powers in the Middle East,” Ciddi said.

At the same time, Ciddi said Erdoğan “seems intent on taking actions inside Syria that are perceived by Israel as military escalation,” citing proposed arms sales, military training and assistance, continued Turkish influence over former militia members integrated into Syria’s new army and, most significantly, “developing military bases with Turkish troops and sensitive equipment.”

“Israel established clear red lines about what it was willing to tolerate in Syria,” Ciddi said. “Deconfliction only works if parties implement the agreed upon rules.”

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The dispute was already being discussed at senior levels before the strike. Mossad chief Roman Gofman spoke with al-Shaibani on Aug. 14, four days before the attack, according to three sources cited by Reuters. The conversation focused on Israel’s concerns about Turkey’s military presence in Syria, including potential troop deployments, weapons sales and drones supplied to the Syrian military.

Attempts to prevent an Israeli-Turkish clash are not new. Turkey and Israel began technical talks in Azerbaijan in 2025 aimed at preventing misunderstandings or military incidents in Syria. Turkey’s defense minister said in June 2025 that those contacts were continuing as Ankara trained and advised Syria’s military.

Ciddi argued that a mechanism alone would not prevent further Israeli action if Ankara continued pushing against what Jerusalem considers its security red lines.

“To the extent that Ankara will push boundaries and attempt to position military capabilities that Israel feels is harmful to its safety, we are likely to see pre-emptive action by Jerusalem,” Ciddi said. “The ball is in Erdoğan’s court to not raise the temperature.”

Netanyahu is also facing criticism from inside Israel. Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, a longtime Netanyahu adversary, accused the prime minister Wednesday of deliberately escalating tensions with Turkey for political purposes ahead of the Israeli election.

“Turkey is not Iran or Assad’s Syria,” Barak wrote in Hebrew on X, arguing that Israel’s strategic disputes with Ankara could be resolved, moderated or postponed through discreet diplomacy coordinated with the United States.

News Media reached out to the White House, the Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C., and Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz for comment.