Turkey closes main border crossing to Syria

(Patria) - Turkey today closed the main border crossing to northeastern Syria, after Turkish units were attacked by Syrians angered by violence against their compatriots in Turkey, local residents and a Syrian opposition source said.

- Turkish police detained 474 people involved in attacks on the Syrian community across the country carried out overnight - said Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.

The violence began late on Sunday. In the central city of Kayseri, Syrian property, homes and vehicles were destroyed and set on fire.

The violence was fueled by social media posts claiming that a Syrian had abused a cousin. Yerlikaya said the incident is under investigation.

The violence spread to the provinces of Hatay, Gaziantep, Konya, Bursa and a district of Istanbul, reported the Turkish intelligence agency MIT. Social media reported that there were injured among Syrians.

Afterwards, hundreds of angry Syrians took to the streets in several rebel-held towns in northwestern Syria, an area where Turkey has thousands of troops and has built its sphere of influence, preventing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad from taking control.

Late last night, Turkey responded to the unrest by closing the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, the main trade and passenger route for more than three million residents, as well as Bab al-Salam and other smaller crossings, a border official told Reuters.

The Syrian border town of Afrin was the scene of the most violent clashes. At least four people were killed.

Civilians threw stones at Turkish convoys in several towns and removed the Turkish flag from some offices. Several Turkish officials described the unrest in Syria as "provocations".

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan blamed the opposition for the anti-Syrian attacks, accusing it, without evidence, of stoking racism in a country hosting more than three million Syrian refugees.

- Nothing can be achieved by inciting xenophobia or hatred towards refugees in the public - Erdogan said.

Turkey severed relations with Syria after the outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011 and supported rebels seeking to oust Assad from power.