Officials say Syria has asked Turkey for defense support amid sectarian clashes

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Syria’s interim government has requested Turkey’s support to strengthen its defense capabilities, Turkish officials said, following sectarian violence over the past two weeks that increased tensions in Syria and drew intervention by Israel. The defense ministry officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity according to procedures, said Wednesday that Syria has also sought assistance to combat “terrorist organizations,” including the Islamic State group. Turkey — which has long expressed readiness to assist Syria — was working toward providing training, advisory services and technical support to help strengthen Syria’s defense capacity, the officials added. Syrian officials could not be immediately reached for comment. Source