AFP reports: War-torn Syria on Sunday advised its citizens to avoid travel to neighbouring Turkey, where massive protests have rocked several cities, because of “a deterioration in the security situation.”

The warning issued by the foreign ministry comes as a civil war that has killed tens of thousands ravages Syria, pitting rebels backed by Turkey and other countries against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

“The foreign ministry advises Syrian citizens to avoid travel to Turkey for their own safety because of a deterioration in the security situation in a number of Turkish cities,” it said in a statement carried on Syrian state television.