US notified Turkey before Israel began attacking Iran, sources say
The United States notified Turkey of Israel's plans to strike Iran on Friday, a few hours before the strikes took place, two sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye.
The American notification late on Thursday may have helped prevent potential tensions between Turkey and Israel, who have recently found themselves at loggerheads in Syria over Ankara’s increased presence in the country.
Israeli jets are believed to have used Syrian and Iraqi airspace to target sites across the Islamic Republic. Since December, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government has destroyed every aerial defence system in Syria, effectively leaving the country defenceless.
On Friday, Iraq's foreign ministry filed a complaint with the UN Security Council over Israeli aircraft using the country's airspace to strike Iran.
The Reuters news agency reported on Friday that the State Department sent a diplomatic note to several regional allies in the Middle East, including Qatar, informing them of the looming Israeli strikes on Iran.
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MEE reached out to the Turkish foreign ministry and the US State Department for comment but did not receive a response by time of publication.
Tensions between Turkey and Israel have escalated as Ankara and Damascus have begun talks to establish several military bases in Syria to help train the country's fractured military.
Along with Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan, Turkey aims to help Damascus combat the remnants of the so-called Islamic State (IS) group and seeks control of the Tiyas air base, also known as T4, in eastern Syria.
Although Ankara began operations at the base in April, activities have progressed gradually due to Turkish-Israeli deconfliction talks held in Baku, according to the sources familiar with the issue.
One of Israel's main concerns is the possibility of Turkey gaining control of Syrian airspace and potentially deploying Russian-made S-400 air defence systems there.
An Israeli official told MEE last month that Israel did not want Ankara to closely track Israeli aerial movements, especially in the event of an attack on Iran.
A Turkish source told MEE that Ankara was unlikely to deploy S-400s to Syria, as Washington opposes the plan. Instead Turkey is expected to deploy air defence systems targeting immediate threats such as drones and low-altitude attacks.
Since Israel launched its assault on Iran, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has held several phone calls with regional leaders, including the presidents of the Islamic Republic, the US and Russia, advocating for diplomacy as the only way to resolve the dispute.
Over the weekend, Erdogan told US President Donald Trump that negotiations over Iran's nuclear programme were the only peaceful solution to end the conflict, and offered Turkey as a facilitator for peace.
According to Ankara insiders, the Turkish Air Force was placed on high alert as the government convened a series of security meetings to study potential emergency scenarios and spillover risks following the start of the Israeli military campaign.
In his phone call to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa over the weekend, Erdogan advised Syria not to become involved in the escalation between Iran and Israel, and to remain alert to further risks and attacks by terrorist groups.
A MEE correspondent, who has requested anonymity, contributed to this report.
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