IS has been inflicting harm not only on Islam, but also on human dignity itself and must be eradicated, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Saturday.
“IS has been inflicting a major blow to Islam. It needs to be eradicated since it has been inflicting a major blow to human dignity,” Davutoglu said during his speech to prominent Alevi leaders in the capital Ankara, World Bulletin reported.
He added that Islam was a religion of peace and love and not what IS is trying to portray, which is a picture of tyranny.
In his speech, Davutoglu also said that Kurdistan Workers’ Party is an “evil” that needed to be eradicated.
Turkey has stepped up its operations against IS following the July 20 deadly suicide bombing in Suruc, a southeastern district of Turkey that killed 34 people, including the suicide bomber. The suicide bombing was blamed on IS.
On July 24, Ankara launched a “two-pronged war” against Islamic State militants in Syria as well as PKK positions in northern Iraq, although the bombardments so far have been largely concentrated on PKK positions. PKK has been designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey, US and EU.
Ankara has also allowed the US to use the Incirlik Air Base for coalition strikes against IS.
