BRUSSELS
The only way to deal with extremist and terrorist group ISIL is by using ‘unconventional forces,’ Turkey’s EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Volkan Bozkir said on Thursday.
In a speech at the European Parliament for Foreign Affairs community on Thursday, Bozkir said that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant is itself an unconventional force. Bozkir reminded the European Parliament how the terrorist group captured Mosul with 1800 guerillas. He said ISIL captured Mosul – which it still controls – while it was defended by 55,000 soldiers of the Iraqi conventional forces.
To fight against this unconventional forces like ISIL, opposition fighters in Syria, such as members of the Free Syrian Army, could be brought to Turkey for training by members of international defense forces. Moderate opposition forces could be separated from the militias of terrorist groups Al Qaeda and Al-Nusra.
''We can train the opposition fighters, equip them, and send them to solve the ISIL problem once and for all,'' Bozkir said. However, a no fly zone needs to be implemented and a secure zone set up, Bozkir said. "The secure zone is an area for the refugees to stay before being sent back to their homes," he said.
Bozkir also mentioned that calling the terrorist groupISIL -- Islamic State of Iraq and Levant -- is dangerous because the L stands for Levant, a geographic region which encompasses Cyprus, Jordan and Palestine. Bozkir said this term is exaggerating the importance of the terrorist group.
Bozkir was asked about the release of 49 Turkish citizens who worked for the Turkish Consulate in Mosul, who were taken hostage by ISIL on June 11, and released on September 20.
Asked for details about the hostage release, Bozkir replied that it was a secret deal that cannot be discussed.
''In all these kinds of incidents every country's first priority is to save lives and every country makes deals of this type. What we have done is save 49 lives.''
www.aa.com.tr/en
