Syrian Army Says It Will 'Bring Down' Any Turkish War Planes in Its Airspace

TEHRAN (Tasnim) - The Syrian military said that it would bring down any Turkish war planes entering Syrian air space, a response to airstrikes carried out by Turkey overnight in northern Syria.

'Any attempt to once again breach Syrian airspace by Turkish war planes will be dealt with and they will be brought down by all means available,' the Syrian army general command said in a statement reported by Reuters.

Turkish airstrikes hit a group of Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Unit (YPG), the military wing of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), fighters allied to US-backed militants late on Oct. 18, which the Syrian statement called an act of 'blatant aggression'.

Northern Syria is an increasingly complex battlefield and the Oct. 18 airstrikes highlighted the conflicting agendas of NATO members Turkey and the United States.

Turkey supports Free Syrian Army (FSA) fighters opposed to Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

At the same time, the United States has backed PYD-led forces in their own fight against Daesh, infuriating Ankara, which sees the YPG as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) militants.