The first tweet I saw on March 23 was from @RedHack EN: “Erdogan could not shoot down Twitter bird so he took his revenge from Syrian jet. Say no to dirty wars.” The sarcastic tweet was a response to the latest news that Turkey shot down a Syrian plane near the border. The Turkish government argued that the Syrian plane had crossed into Turkish airspace. In line with the latest rules of engagement, Turkish armed forces (TAF) reported warning the pilots four times, then shooting down the plane that violatedTurkish airspace while the other Syrian aircraft disengaged and left the area.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul promptly called and congratulated Chief of General Staff Gen. Necdet Ozel. At the same time, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was at another campaign rally, told the crowd, “Another assassin violated our airspace, then what happened? Our air force shot the plane down. If you violate our rules, our slap will be hard.” Erdogan went on to praise the Turkish general staff and Turkey's “brave” pilots and courageous soldiers. He used the term hashashi, "assassin," the word he has been using to refer to the movement of Islamic leader Fethullah Gulen. Oddly, just before his comments on the plane incident, Erdogan denounced “the man in Pennsylvania,” meaning Gulen himself.

In the meantime, the Syrian government condemned Erdogan. The Syrian pilot who survived the crash appeared on TV, saying, “Turkish planes attacked us while we were bombing terrorists inside Syria. We were about seven kilometers away from the Turkish border.” Oddly enough, one of the pro-AKP TV stations managed to broadcast the incident live on the news. It is further peculiar that the reporter on the scene claims to have gotten the news directly and instantaneously from the rebels across the border. For example, the reporter said, “There are several shots being fired now, but these are shots to celebrate the shooting down of [President Bashar al-] Assad's plane.” This coincidence was found suspicious by many, adding to beliefs that a Turkish government besieged by serious corruption charges hopes to hide behind the fog of war. 

Social media, especially Twitter, lit up with the hashtag #savasahayir (No to war in Syria). Several tweets questioned the AKP’s timing in getting tough with Syria. Many also asked if this was yet another gimmick for the AKP to delay the upcoming municipal elections by declaring a state of emergency. Turks fear that Erdogan, cornered by one scandal after another, will resort to martial law to delay the elections. This conspiracy first sounded bizarre to many Turks, but increasing social and political pressures indicate that anything is possible in enraged Erdogan’s Turkey. I am not sure whether delaying the elections is a real possibility in the minds of AKP elites. However, they have managed to restage every scene of the 1998 movie “Wag the Dog” about the spin doctors who manage public opinion.