“Escalation of clashes in northern Syria will result in the killing of more innocent people and civilians,” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said on Tuesday, reacting to Turkey’s move to launch a major military intervention in Syria by sending tanks and warplanes across the border in the so-called Euphrates Shield operation.

Ankara says the purpose of the military involvement is to dislodge Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group from Jarablus and to contain the expansion of Kurdish fighters in northern Syria.

Elsewhere in his comments, the Iranian spokesman said although the fight against terrorism should be a main principle in the foreign policy of peace-loving countries, it should not provide a pretext to justify the violation of another country’s territorial integrity, military operations without permission from that country’s central government or disrespect for its sovereignty.

In the war on terrorism, there is no place for the approaches that would undermine a central government’s political sovereignty and legitimacy, Qassemi added.