Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 7
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Turkey will take part in ground operations against Islamic state (IS) militants in Syria if the airspace over the country is announced a no-fly zone, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in an interview with CNN.
"The increased violence and intensified activity of the terrorists in Syria is caused by the regime led by President Bashar al-Assad," Davutoglu said.
"As long as President Assad remains in power, the IS controls most of the Syrian cities," Davutoglu said.
The terrorist organization known as the 'Islamic State' (IS, formerly ISIL or ISIS) was created in 2003 in Iraq. Between 2004 and 2006, the organization was led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and consisted of 11 radical Islamist groups, which had close ties to the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda.
Following the start of military confrontation in Syria in 2013 between the armed opposition and the government forces, the IS penetrated the country. IS said at the time it refuses to take the oath of Al-Qaeda and declared 'a holy war' against all groups in Iraq and Syria, as well as the Syrian government forces.
Strengthening of the IS in Syria allowed it to return to Iraq, deploying military actions against government forces there.
In late June of 2014, the IS announced about the creation of the 'Islamic Caliphate' on the territories under its control in Iraq and Syria. In turn, Iraqi authorities asked the international community for help in fighting the IS.