Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has warned President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan against expanding Turkey’s military role in Syria, telling him not to “mess with” Israel or risk a confrontation similar to that in Iran.
Katz made the remarks in an interview at Israel’s Channel 14 Security Conference on Tuesday amid concern in Israel that Turkish bases or air defense systems in Syria could restrict Israeli military operations near the occupied Golan Heights.
“We are not the collapsing Christian empire. Jerusalem is not Constantinople, which you conquered when you built the Ottoman Empire,” Katz said. “We are here forever. Jerusalem is ours forever.”
“My advice to Erdoğan is not to mess with us and not to put himself in the position that Iran put itself in,” he added. “Instead, he should take care of Turkey and its own affairs. We will take care of our own interests.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Türkiye:
We are not the collapsing Christian empire. Jerusalem is not Constantinople, which you conquered when you built the Ottoman Empire.
We are here forever. Jerusalem is ours forever. We know how to defend ourselves, and we are… pic.twitter.com/iaZcUC10q1
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 28, 2026
Katz appeared to be referring to Iran’s military confrontation with Israel and the United States, which began in February. He did not elaborate on the comparison.
His historical analogy referred to the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, in 1453. The Ottoman state had been established more than a century earlier.
Israel captured East Jerusalem in the 1967 Middle East war and later annexed it in a move not recognized by most of the international community. Israel regards the entire city as its capital, while Palestinians want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future state.
There was no immediate response from Ankara.
Katz’s warning reflects growing competition between Turkey and Israel over Syria since the overthrow of longtime president Bashar al-Assad in December 2024.
Turkey was a leading supporter of the opposition to Assad and has become a major regional backer of the government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa, the former leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).
Ankara has discussed training and equipping Syria’s new armed forces and establishing training facilities under a possible defense agreement with Damascus. Turkish teams also reportedly examined Syrian airbases for potential deployments, although Turkey has not confirmed plans for permanent bases at those locations.
Israel views an expanded Turkish military presence, particularly at airbases in central Syria, as a threat to its freedom to conduct operations in the country.
Israeli forces seized the UN-monitored buffer zone separating Syria from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights following Assad’s fall and have carried out extensive strikes on Syrian military installations. Israel says its operations are necessary to prevent weapons and hostile forces from threatening its territory. Syria and Turkey accuse Israel of violating Syrian sovereignty.
In April 2025 Israel struck several Syrian bases, including facilities that Turkish teams had reportedly examined for possible deployments.
The tensions prompted Turkish and Israeli officials to hold technical talks in Azerbaijan aimed at establishing a mechanism to prevent accidental clashes or misunderstandings between their forces.
Turkey said the talks did not signal a normalization of relations. Israel reportedly told Ankara that establishing Turkish bases near Palmyra in central Syria would cross a “red line.”
Turkey has also condemned Israeli incursions and strikes in southern Syria as violations of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated sharply since Israel launched its war on Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
Erdoğan has repeatedly accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of genocide and war crimes in Gaza. Israel denies the accusations and accuses Erdoğan of supporting Hamas, which Turkey does not designate as a terrorist organization.
Turkey recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv in November 2023 and halted all direct trade with Israel in May 2024. Israel also withdrew its diplomats from Turkey amid security concerns and the deepening dispute.
A ceasefire that took effect in October 2025 has not ended Israeli strikes in Gaza. At least 73,246 Palestinians had been killed and 173,727 injured as of July 15, according to Gaza Health Ministry figures cited by the United Nations.
The Hamas-led Oct. 7 attacks killed some 1,200 people in Israel, according to Israeli figures, and militants took 251 hostages.