Turkey deploys heavy weaponry to Syrian border
A picture taken on a tour organised by the Syrian Red Crescent shows Syrian soldiers deploying along the Syrian-Turkish border near the village of Khirbet al-Joz in the northern province of Idlib on June 29, 2011 as the number of Syrian refugees taking shelter in tent cities in Turkey decreased to 10,757 after several hundred people turned back home, Turkish officials said.
Turkey today sent rocket launchers and anti-aircraft weaponry to its border with Syria after losing a military jet to Syrian forces last week, reported BBC News.
The move comes amid growing pressure on Syrian regime, with rebel forces today launching a series of bomb attacks on Damascus, according to state media cited by CNN.
More from GlobalPost: Turkey issues border warning to Syria
Turkish officials told Reuters that air defenses were also being increased along the border.
Turkey's "Phantom" military plane, shot down by Syria on Friday, resulted in the loss of its two pilots and prompted outcry from Ankara. The two pilots remain missing.
Turkey insists the plane was in international airspace when it was targeted and earlier this week warned Syria not to mess with its border. NATO also condemned the incident.
"From here onwards, we warn the Syrian regime not to make any mistakes, not to test Turkey’s decisiveness and wisdom," Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, reported Al Jazeera.
BBC said large numbers of military vehicles were moving near the area where the plane went down.
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