Could The Syrian Downing Of A Turkish Jet Bring In NATO

The last time Turkish armed forces fought in Syria was at the height of World War I. At the time, Turkish troops associated with a decrepit empire based in Istanbul were battling against local insurgents and allied French-British forces.

Nearly a century after the fact, defense analysts and foreign-policy experts are in a fit about the possibility of Turkish armed forces again operating in Syria, this time most likely in alliance with French-British forces and assisting the local guerrillas against an outdated regime headquartered in Damascus.

In the aftermath of the Syrian downing of a Turkish F-4 Phantom reconnaissance jet, very near the Syrian coast and the Turkish province of Hatay -- which the Syrians have long argued is in fact historically Syrian -- everyone is wondering what the Turkish government will do.

On Saturday, the official Syrian Arab News Agency quoted a military representative as saying that "an unidentified aerial target violated Syrian airspace" on Friday. The plane was then shot down by Syrian anti-aircraft artillery over the Mediterranean Sea to the west of the village of Om al-Tuyour in the province of Lattakia. Analysts expect the country's defense forces to be on high alert due to the current domestic crisis and fears of foreign intervention.

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