By Emin Avundukluoglu
ANKARA
Lawmakers from the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AK Party, have criticized the main opposition Republican People's Party, or CHP, for demanding a new parliamentary motion to save the Syrian town of Kobani.
Opposition party leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu rejected Thursday an article of the recently approved parliamentary motion that authorized the government to deploy soldiers in Iraq and Syria.
He instead called for an altogether new motion that would authorize Turkey to cooperate in the U.S.-led coalition airstrikes on the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, or the ISIL, targets in Syria and Iraq.
The ruling party's Parliamentary Deputy Group Chairman Ahmet Aydin told AA: "On one hand, the CHP wants the government to protect Kobani, while on the other hand they have voted against the motion that authorizes the government to fight against the ISIL threat."
Aydin termed the opposition party’s demand as “insincere” and “contradictory.”
The ruling party’s MP from Diyarbakir, Galip Ensarioglu, said the opposition party had never supported the Turkish government for its steps in Syria and Iraq.
Diyarbakir is one of the largest cities in southeast Turkey where the “illegal and unauthorized” demonstrations in support of the Kurdish groups in Kobani have been held since Tuesday last.
"It is impossible to open an aisle to Kobani over Turkey," Ensarioglu said.
He added that were more than 2,000 armed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, militants across Turkey, who occasionally carried out terror acts.
Turkish parliament had authorized the government on October 2 to deploy troops in Syria and Iraq to fight “any group” that threatens the country.
The Nationalist Movement Party, the third-largest party in the parliament, had also supported the motion that was submitted on October 1 by Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's cabinet.
The main opposition Republican People's Party and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party had both voted against the motion.
The Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, or the ISIL launched an offensive in mid-September on Kobani, also known as Ayn al-Arab, and was now said to be on the brink of capturing the key town.
www.aa.com.tr/en
