Turkey weighing military buffer zone inside Syria

Turkish forces may enter Syrian territory to create a military buffer zone if the unrest there degenerates into a civil war and sparks a refugee crisis, a leading Turkish newspaper reported Thursday. Commenting on an article he wrote in the daily Posta newspaper, prominent Turkish journalist Mehmet Ali Birand said a civil war in Syria could force up to 200,000 thousand people to flee towards Turkey. "The UN would become involved, and Turkey would be obligated to close its border and create a buffer zone," with its army, he told AFP Thursday. "This option was raised at the highest level, some time ago," he added. A diplomat who requested anonymity denied specific knowledge of the proposal but said it could be under consideration. "Under the current circumstances, we are discussing all kinds of options," he said. By Wednesday, some 8,421 Syrians had fled to Turkey following heavy clashes between regime forces and pro-democracy demonstrators. Most are staying in a series of tent villages set up the the Turkish Red Crescent in Hatay province, which borders Syria. Many came from Jisr al-Shughur, a flashpoint of the anti-government uprising 40 kilometres (25 miles) from the Turkish border that has been pounded recently by Syrian regime troops. Turkey has toughened its stance against President Bashar al-Assad's government and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently said Assad's troops do not act "humanely."