U.S. envoy: Israel strike in Syria could spark Turkey clash
Barrack floated the idea Israel may be trying to draw Turkey in, but stressed it was only a theory, not an intelligence finding.
Tom Barrack, the U.S. special envoy for Syria and Iraq, warned that Israel's strike on Abu al-Duhur Air Base in Idlib, Syria, risked triggering a direct military confrontation with Turkey. In an interview published Aug. 21, Barrack said one possible motive was that Israel was "trying to lure" Turkey, but he stressed that was only a theory. The Aug. 18 strike hit the runway and storage facilities with eight strikes; no casualties were reported. Israel said Damascus had nearly violated the security status quo by opening the way for Turkish forces to be stationed at the base. A source in Turkey's Defense Ministry said there was no Turkish military mission at Abu al-Duhur before or during the attack. Haaretz also criticized Benjamin Netanyahu's move as opening a new front ahead of Israel's Oct. 27, 2026 election.