President Erdogan says Turkey fighting Islamic State group 'alone'

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lashed out at the international community on Sunday, saying that Ankara has been left to fight the Islamic State group alone.

"They have left us alone in our struggle against this organisation which is shedding our blood both through suicide bombings and by attacks on Kilis," he said, referring to a Turkish border town regularly hit with rockets fired from Syria.

"In Syria none of those who say they are fighting Daesh [Islamic State] have suffered the kind of losses that we have, nor paid such a heavy price as us," added Erdogan.

On the same day, the controversial Turkish leader also hit out at Europe, accusing them of "dictatorship" and "cruelty" for closing their doors to refugees fleeing the war in Syria.

Turkey is on maximum alert after increased IS activity in the country, with Ankara and Istanbul both witnessing militant attacks.

However, Turkey has been accused of not doing enough to clampdown on IS foreign recruits crossing the border into Syria, while others have said there is active collusion between the two groups. It is a charge Ankara has frequently denied.

Last summer Turkish forces launched airstrikes against the extremist group across the border.

The border town of Kilis has come under frequent attack from rockets fired across the border from Syria that have killed at least 21 people. The Turkish army regularly responds by firing shells back into Syria.

Ankara also allows US war planes to use its air base in southern Turkey to launch airstrikes against the extremist group.

In return, the United States has also promised to provide cutting-edge artillery to Turkey, so it can better target IS militants over the border.

On Saturday, Turkey launched a salvo of artillery strikes on northern Syria that killed 55 members of the Islamic State group, Turkish news agencies reported.