ANKARA
Daesh has been inflicting harm to not only Islam, but also human dignity itself and must be eradicated, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Saturday.
“Daesh has been inflicting a major blow to Islam. It needs to be eradicated since it has been inflicting a major blow to human dignity,” Davutoglu said during his speech to prominent Alevi leaders in the capital Ankara. Alevis constitute the second-largest religious community in Turkey after Sunni Muslims.
He added that Islam was a religion of peace and love, and not what Daesh was trying to portray, which was a picture of tyranny.
In his speech, Davutoglu also said that Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) was also an evil that needed to be eradicated.
Turkey has stepped up its operations against Daesh following the July 20 deadly suicide bombing in Suruc, a southeastern district of Turkey that killed 34 people, including the suicide bomber. The suicide bombing was blamed on Daesh.
Ankara has now also allowed the U.S. to use the Incirlik military base for coalition strikes against Daesh.
PKK has been designated as terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and EU.
