Syria - Nov 19, 2011 - 23:47

Turkish newspapers said on Saturday Ankara had contingency plans to create no-fly or buffer zones to protect civilians in neighbouring Syria from security forces there if the bloodshed worsens.

Turkey opposes unilateral steps or intervention aimed at "regime change" in Syria, the reports said, but it has not ruled out the possibility of more extensive military action if security forces began committing large-scale massacres.

The reports, based on a briefing by Turkish officials to selected journalists, came on the day of an Arab League deadline for President Bashar al-Assad's government to end its repression of anti-government unrest and comply with a peace plan.

The columnist Sedat Ergin wrote in Hurriyet newspaper:

It's almost certain that Bashar al-Assad's regime is going down, all the assessments are made based on this assumption.

Foreign Ministry sources say that the sooner the regime goes down, the better for Turkey.

It is out of the question that Turkey carries out a military intervention to change the regime. However, it takes a flexible stance on opposition groups running activities in Turkey.