What supports ISIS?


There is a wide consensus on the presumption that Turkey provides support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and the highest rate of participation in this organization comes from Turkey. It is possible to say that the main factor supporting this presumption is the domestic and foreign opponents of the Justice and Development Party (AK Party) since large masses are ready to believe this truth-bending. However, the media covers some findings and analyses that display the tangible conditions.It has been observed within the last two years in which Turkey has been calling for President Bashar Assad's ouster in Syria that the country has been providing Syrian opposition groups with various aid including humanitarian help and ammunition. The issue becomes evident with the Syrian opposition's instability and inability to institutionalize because it is not possible to be sure about who received the aid. ISIS also had close relations with the Syrian opposition for a while, but then it started to separate itself from other groups and dominated opposition movement by the use of force.Consequently, it would not be surprising if a part of the aid provided by Turkey reached ISIS. Besides, Turkey saw ISIS as a danger from the very beginning and helped Syrian opposition groups to remain independent from this organization, but it was impossible to achieve that since the West gave no support to Syrian opposition groups out of fear of arming radicals.The subject of Turkey's aiding ISIS was presented in the media with deliberate exaggerations for a while. They reported false news and served them to the Western press to create an impression that the highest participation rate is from Turkey. However, we now have the figures from direct observers that say the greatest participation rate is from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries.Moreover, the figures also show that the participation rates from the U.K. and France are higher than Turkey. It is not surprising since Western countries are more convenient for jihadi Salafism's development than Turkey. The alienation stories of young Muslims who feel part of a ghettoization process, both physically and intellectually, direct themselves to the Middle East. The internal anger created by the incompatibility problems in the places they live turns into a tool of war between identities. The inferiority complex they feel in the West is probably compensated by acquiring a personality by joining a jihadi fight.Of course some ISIS members are from Turkey and it is not easy to prevent the possible future participants from joining. As the world puts emphasis on identities, the Middle East has become an extension of Turkey according to this perspective. The transformation experienced in the country under AK Party rule has spread an Ottoman-inspired perspective and especially attracted the youth's interest to discover other "brotherly" cultures across the borders. We can also add the mistakes and insensibility of the West regarding the incidents in the Middle East and a general Western support of the coup in Egypt. This complicated perspective and evaluation could lure all the politicized Islamic young people from all over the world to the Middle East and make them fall into the clutches of ISIS.The first condition to prevent this is the West's genuine support of the democratic demands in the region. As long as the social will is allowed to be suppressed by authoritarian governments in the name of stability, the rejection of the Islamic grassroots base will be intensified and a part of this group will be jihadis. It is ironic for a world that could not appreciate the Muslim Brotherhood to complain about ISIS. If this policy is being maintained for the "safety" of Israel then it would be good to clearly admit that they endure ISIS for the sake of Israel and Israel is pleased with ISIS's existence. In such a case, sincerity would benefit all.