Turkey 'support for IS' to blame for Kobane 'massacre'

Turkey's pro-Kurdish party described an Islamic State attack on the Syrian border town of Kobane Thursday as a 'massacre' and blamed it on 'Turkish state support' for the militants.
2 min read
25 June, 2015
Yuksekdags' comments are certain to add to tensions with Ankara. [Getty]

A pro Kurdish political party in Turkey blamed an attack on the town of Kobane by Islamic State extermists on Thursday on what she said was Ankara's support for IS.

Figen Yuksekdag, the co-leader of the Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), also described the attack on the Syrian town as a 'massacre'.

These comments will fuel tension in the Turkish capital amid attempts to form a government.

Islamic State fighters launched simultaneous attacks against the Syrian government and Kurdish militia overnight, with at least one car bomb in an area near the border crossing with Turkey. Hospital officials said at least 15 people were killed and 70 wounded.

"The Turkish government has supported ISIL for years. Today's massacre is a part of this support," said Yuksekdag, referring to Islamic State. 

The pro-Kurdish HDP entered parliament for the first time after clearing a 10 percent threshold in the June 7 elections.

Its success helped to deprive the governing AK Party founded by President Tayyip Erdogan of a majority for the first time in over a decade. The AKP now needs to find a coalition partner.  

"The remarks of Turkish politicians are null and void for us. It is up to the Turkish government to prove it does not support ISIL," she added.  

Turkey is a member of the US led coalition against Islamic State, although its partners have urged it to do more.

Yuksekdag also told reporters there was a "high probability" that the attackers on Thursday had entered Kobane from Turkey.  

Turkish sources deny such allegations and say the attack was staged from Jarablus, to the west of Kobane.