Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned on Wednesday that Kurdish militants in Syria must lay down their arms or face being “buried” in Syrian soil. His remarks come amid escalating tensions between Turkish-backed Syrian fighters and Kurdish militants following the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime earlier this month.

Speaking to lawmakers of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in parliament, Erdogan stated, according to Reuters: “Either the separatist murderers lay down their weapons, or they will be buried in Syrian soil along with them.”

He also announced plans to reopen Turkey’s consulate in Aleppo soon, predicting increased border activity next summer as some of the millions of Syrian refugees hosted by Turkey begin returning home.