In earlier statements, Fidan clarified that Ankara has had excellent cooperation with Hayat Tahrir Sham (HTS), which is at the forefront of the Islamist groups that seized power in Damascus, on the 8th of this month.

HTS shared useful intelligence to combat Islamic State and Al Qaeda-linked organizations. They helped us a lot, but due to the sensitivity of the matter, we did not make it public then, he said.

At the same time, he denied that what happened in Syria has led to Ankara now controlling Damascus, and indicated that it was a seizure of power by the will of the Syrian people.

On the 15th of this month, the Turkish government reopened its embassy in Damascus after a break in relations since mid-2011.

The opening of the representation came a few days after a delegation led by the head of the intelligence services, Ibrahim Kalin visited this capital. Kalin met with the head of the Syrian interim government, Muhammad Al-Bashir, and the head of the new administration, Ahmed Al-Sharaa.

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