'Islamist' Turkish Gov't arms extremist groups including ISIL, AK Party founder says.

'Islamist' Turkish Gov't arms extremist groups including ISIL, AK Party founder says. (TZ).

Dengir Mir Mehmet Fırat, one of the founders of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party), has argued that the Turkish government has armed extremist groups in Syria, including the terrorist Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

According to Fırat, the government has made substantial concessions to several extremist groups in an effort to hamper Kurds' efforts to establish autonomy in Rojava -- an area in the north of Syria densely populated by Kurds. Fırat said these concessions include arming and supplying financial assistance to these groups, adding, "All these miscalculated policies have brought Turkey to the point we are facing now."

Fırat argued that the issue of Kobani is not something that is important only to Turkey's Kurds but rather has also been a source of concern for Kurds all over the world.

Accusing the government of exacerbating the deteriorating situation in Kobani, Fırat recalled certain media reports, saying: "The government has allowed ISIL terrorists to be treated in Turkish hospitals. Health Minister Mehmet Müezzinoğlu also confirmed and defended the treatment of ISIL militants, saying, 'Treating the wounded ISIL fighters is a humanitarian matter.' However, when a PYD [Democratic Union Party] militant's corpse was brought to Turkey, officials did not even allow him to be placed in a morgue. This is a huge contradiction with the minister's former statements. All this has contributed to sparking the uprising about Kobani among the Kurds." Read the full story here.