Baku, Azerbaijan, Oct. 3
By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:
Turkey will do everything possible to protect the Syrian town of Kobani, settled by Kurds, from the IS (the Islamic State group) terrorist organization, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Oct. 3 in an interview with A Haber channel.
He said that under the recent changes in Turkish laws, the country's armed forces are entitled to take part in military operations in other states.
Davutoglu also said the government intends to take the advantage of the mandate, which was earlier approved by Turkey's parliament. Under the mandate, Turkish armed forces' can take part in the military operations in Syria and Iraq.
Women in Turkey are against the move, as on Oct. 2 they staged a protest against the parliament's adoption of the mandate. More than 200 women blocked the traffic on the bridge, which connects the European and Asian side of Istanbul in protest against the mandate. Istanbul police detained 16 females during the protests.
Previously, the Turkish parliament gave permission for the armed forces' participation in military operations abroad. Some 298 MPs, out of 396, voted for the mandate, while 98 voted against it.
The document was supported by Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), as well as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Earlier, the Republican People's Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish People's Democratic Party (HDP) stated that they would not support the document.
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.
...