Erdogan says Reyhanlı balsts intend to drag Turkey into a bloody swamp in Syria

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan attended a Mother's Day event organized by his Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Istanbul on Sunday. Speaking at the event, Erdogan said that Turkey would exercise extreme caution against what he described as provocations to draw Turkey into the conflict in Syria. Erdogan's remarks came a day after a pair of blasts occurred in the border town of Reyhanli in the southern Turkish province of Hatay, near Syria, killing 46 people on Saturday and injuring some 100 or more. Some of those injured remain in critical condition. Erdogan added that the deadly blasts in Reyhanli near the Syrian border reflected an intention to drag Turkey into a bloody swamp in Syria and aimed to disrupt Turkey's peace, urging vigilance against provocations. "Turkey's patience and composure are being tested. They want to drag Turkey into a filthy scenario. But we will not fall into this trap," Erdogan noted and warned against any retaliation attacks against Syrian refugees, saying that this would only serve the interests of those who perpetrated the attack. "If there is a single attack against a Syrian guest, even only verbal, the attackers will win," he said.