Two recent developments concerning the painfully long Syrian civil war illustrate how Turkey is challenged to keep order at its border. First is the issue of massive numbers of Syrian refugees continuing to flow into Turkey, and the second is Turkey's dubious preparedness in the face of a potential chemical warfare threat.
The news broke Thursday [May 2] afternoon that gunshots were exchanged between Syrians trying to enter the country and Turkish security forces at the Akcakale crossing in Sanliurfa. Previously there have been incidents at border camps where Syrian refugees live inside the Turkish territory, but today's incident is the first of its kind that occurred across the border.
