Violence in Syria's Druze province has triggered Israeli military action, complicating relations with Turkey and creating a power vacuum that Iran could exploit.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned Israel's military actions in Syria, accusing the country of being a "terrorist state" as well as a destabilizing force in the region.

Israel and Syria have agreed to a ceasefire, the US ambassador to Turkey has said. Several hundred people have reportedly been killed this week in the south of Syria in violence involving local fighters, government authorities and Bedouin tribes.

Isa Giga, 32, resigned from his job as a technical support consultant job and flew to Turkey before crossing into wartorn Syria in 2015.

ISTANBUL (AP) — Turkey sent two firefighting aircraft Saturday to help battle wildfires in neighboring Syria as Turkish firefighters battled a blaze on their side of the border and one person was reported dead in the country’s west.

Turkish President Erdoğan blasted Israel for sabotaging a Syria ceasefire, calling it a ‘terrorist state.’ He vowed Turkey won’t allow Syria’s division or Kurdish exploitation by Zionist forces. Erdogan said Ankara is monitoring developments in Sweida and warned Israel’s aggression threatens regional peace.

In Syria, violence continued between rival factions even after a ceasefire deal. Government troops withdrew overnight from a region as Israel said it would not allow Syrian forces south of Damascus, extending its attempted control of the area.

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