video transcript

ROUGH CUT - NO REPORTER NARRATION Syrian warplanes bombed the town of Azaz close to the Turkish border on Sunday (December 16), destroying at least five homes, causing hundreds of people to flee and stirring panic at a Syrian refugee camp just inside Turkey, Turkish officials said. Most of the bombs hit the centre of Azaz, around three kilometres (two miles) from the Turkish border in an area dominated by Syrian rebels, but at least one landed 500 metres from Turkish soil, one official said. Explosions could be heard several kilometres inside Turkish territory, unnerving people in a refugee camp in the Turkish town of Kilis where some fear they could still be a target of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces. Turkey is loath to be drawn into a regional conflict but frequent proximity of Syrian air raids to the border is testing its pledge to defend itself from any violation of its territory or any spillover of violence from Syria. NATO last week accepted Turkey's request to deploy Patriot anti-missile batteries along the border to reinforce its air defences against possible attack from Syria. The United States, Germany and the Netherlands are to send six Patriot batteries in all. Several Scud missiles fired at rebels by Syria have landed "fairly close" to the Turkish border, NATO's top military commander said on Friday (December 14), explaining why Patriot batteries are being stationed in Turkey. Turkey is a staunch supporter of the uprising against Assad and has harboured both Syrian refugees and rebels.