Turkey asking coalition partners for joint ground operation in Syria, official says

Turkey is asking its coalition partners, including the United States, to take part in a joint ground operation in Syria to try to end the five-year-old civil war, a Turkish official said on Tuesday.

The official said it was now impossible to stop the war without such an operation, but that Ankara would not launch such an offensive on its own.

"Turkey is not going to have a unilateral ground operation. We are asking coalition partners that there should be a ground operation. We are discussing this with allies," the official told reporters at a briefing in Istanbul.

"We want a ground operation. If there is a consensus, Turkey will take part. Without a ground operation, it is impossible to stop this war."

'Turkey is about to conclude a deal with Israel on all issues'

The official also touched upon Turkey's potantial deal with Israel, saying the country is about to conclude a deal with Israel on "all issues", a sign the two former allies may be moving toward a compensation agreement for the murder of 10 Turkish activists by Israeli commandos in 2010.

The two countries have stepped up efforts in recent months to restore a relationship that was severely damaged after an Israeli raid on a Turkish boat, the Mavi Marmara, which had been trying to breach a blockade on the Gaza strip.