Al-Jazeera correspondent reported that demonstrations took place today, Friday, in northern Syria, in protest against statements by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu calling for reconciliation with the Syrian regime, while Ankara issued a clarification statement regarding its policy in Syria.

The demonstrations took place after Friday prayers in many cities and towns in the countryside of Aleppo, Idlib and Hasaka, and the pictures showed crowds of protesters gathering in public squares.

Syrian websites, including Sham Network, broadcast videos of protests in the cities of Azaz, Al-Bab, Al-Atareb and Afrin in the countryside of Aleppo, as well as in the towns of Harem, Al-Dana and Atma, and at the Turkish crossing point opposite the town of Al-Mastouma in Idlib countryside.

Al-Jazeera correspondent said that the demonstrators affirmed that the best solution for lasting peace in Syria passes through holding the regime that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced millions accountable, as they put it.

The protesters also rejected any talk of reconciliation, as it is considered a surrender and a return to the political and security situation that Syria was in before the revolution, they said.

The demonstrators carried banners rejecting any reconciliation or normalization with the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and calling for its overthrow, while protesters in Idlib called for the opening of the fighting fronts against the Syrian regime forces.

Opposition leaders comment

In the most prominent reactions of the Syrian opposition to the statements of the Turkish Foreign Minister, the Minister of Defense of the armed opposition, Hussein Al-Hammadi, considered that the Syrian revolution was not linked to international positions, but rather a revolution in order to restore the historical right of the Syrians.

The commander-in-chief of the "Revolutionaries for Liberation," Fahim Issa, also affirmed that there is no place for Assad or the regime in the future of Syria, and that "the blood of its martyrs is not betrayed."

In the same context, Abu Hatem Shaqra, deputy leader of the opposition Syrian Liberation and Construction Movement, said that he would not put the Syrian revolution on any international scale that is not worth the price of the blood of the revolution's martyrs.

In turn, the leader of the armed opposition's National Army, Al-Farouq Abu Bakr, said that "we have nothing to do with the scales and fluctuations of politics, and we will not kneel or reconcile the criminals and the killers of innocents."

As for the Syrian Islamic Council, he said that reconciliation with the Assad regime means reconciliation with the largest terrorism in the region, as he put it.

Explanatory statement

Meanwhile, the Turkish Foreign Ministry issued, today, Friday, a statement clarifying Turkey's policy towards Syria, following the statements of Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu that sparked protests in northern Syria.

Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said - in a written response published by Anadolu Agency - that Ankara will continue to make a strong contribution to efforts to find a lasting solution to the conflict in Syria in line with the aspirations of the Syrian people through cooperation with all partners in the international community.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman indicated that the political track is currently not witnessing progress due to the procrastination of the Syrian regime, stressing that this is what the Turkish Foreign Minister referred to in his statements yesterday.

Bilgic reviewed the efforts made by Turkey to stop the conflict in Syria through its role in maintaining the ceasefire, establishing the Constitutional Committee through the Astana and Geneva tracks, as well as hosting millions of Syrian refugees, and providing full support to the opposition and its negotiating body.

He also said that his country continues its active contribution to creating the appropriate atmosphere for the voluntary and safe return of Syrian refugees, and to efforts to find a solution to the conflict in accordance with the road map set out in UN Security Council Resolution No. 2254.

Cavusoglu made statements during a conference of ambassadors in Ankara (Anadolu Agency)

Turkish Minister's Statements

Yesterday, during a conference of ambassadors in Ankara, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu revealed that he had a short conversation with the Syrian Foreign Minister, Faisal Miqdad, on the sidelines of the Non-Aligned Movement meeting held last October in the Serbian capital Belgrade.

Cavusoglu confirmed that Russia wants Turkey to hold contacts with the Syrian regime, and that it has suggested holding a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, but he stressed that this is not possible now.

Cavusoglu stressed the need to achieve reconciliation between the opposition and the regime in Syria in some way, indicating that there will be no lasting peace without achieving this.

He added that there must be a strong will to prevent the division of Syria, and the will that can control all of the country's lands can only be established through unity, as he put it.

The Turkish minister added that the only way for Syria to get out of its crisis is through political reconciliation and purification of terrorists, as he put it.