The fight against terrorism is the fight for the very essence of human rights and democracy. It cannot succeed only by fighting terrorist groups. What really needs to happen is that the sources of terrorism need to be rooted out. In this regard, those countries that surrender so many victims to terrorism and constantly fight against terrorism, including the U.S. and EU, have to adopt a stance apart from merely distinguishing the facts. As Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu has rightfully said: "After three years, the international public came to agree with our point on the Syrian matter. They did not respond to our warnings on this matter, and so today, the incidents in Syria threaten our national security. Within these three years, [the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham] ISIS settled in the region. We claim that a third option is possible for Syria. Do not force the Syrian people to choose between the barbaric regime and the barbaric ISIS. Syria must be reconstructed with moderate opponents." From the very beginning, Turkey adopted a stance against Syrian president and dictator, Bashar Assad, since it foresaw the costs of Assad's terror and tyranny. Nobody should deceive themselves about this point.If Turkey had not been left alone when it warned the entire world of Assad three years ago, perhaps ISIS would not exist today, or at very least, would not have achieved its current strength. But the world remained indifferent to the terror and tyranny exercised by the uniformed terrorists of Assad on Sunnis who compose the majority of the public in Syria. This also makes ISIS an attractive option among large sections of the population and enables it to gain public support in the regions where it is positioned. Assad's dictatorship has tyrannized Sunnis for decades while pleasing the Shiite minority.
In other words, if the U.S. and EU had supported the Free Syrian Army when it began to fight against Assad, who is a disgrace to Muslims, ISIS would not enjoy such power today. Unfortunately the world remained indifferent while Assad was massacring his own people, particularly Sunnis, regardless of whether they were children, women or men, only because they demanded democracy, and while the Free Syrian Army was heroically resisting Assad's aircraft, tanks, helicopters, and bombs with their rifles. The world left Syrians alone while they have been suffering from this tyranny for years.
However, they should have learned a lesson from the case of Palestine, which suffers from the tyranny of Israel's state terror.
But they remained indifferent to both cases.
Only one leader and one country sided with the Palestinian people and also did not abandon the Syrian people: Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Turkey.
In Syria, Turkey protected EU standards, which are disregarded by EU countries, as they as they stick their head in the sand and seem to have forgotten the esteemed values of the EU when Syrians and Palestinians are concerned. Turkey saved about 2 million people from being killed in the war. The country also supported the rightful struggle of the Free Syrian Army, which stands for freedom and democracy, as far as it was able.
Turkey displayed a brave stance against ISIS, too, despite the fact that it is located on the threshold of the war.
The country took up a stance against ISIS, which exploits Islam and sheds Muslim blood, by warning the world: "Our Islam is not their Islam. In Turkey's Islam, there is harmony, tolerance and multiculturalism, and their existence poses a threat to our Islamic presence. It is a security threat to us." Turkey's concerns for Syria are very different from those of the international coalition. For Turkey, the question of what will happen after ISIS leaves Syria is crucial. It is legitimate to be concerned about the situation that may arise after ISIS leaves the region, when the uniformed terrorists of Assad may occupy the evacuated regions and terrorize Sunnis, which might in turn lead to the emergence of other terrorist groups. The international coalition is making a great mistake with their strategy of "let's root out ISIS first, we will think of the later phases afterward."
As Davutoğlu pointed out that "the fire is burning on Turkish borders and it mostly hurts Turkish people." Also, some intelligence organizations are maintaining their provocative activities of sustaining this conflict and prolong the chaotic atmosphere. Iran and Russia provide weapons support to Syria. Also, ISIS has modern U.S. weapons they seized in Mosul. In such an atmosphere of conflict, removing only one party would not contribute to the solution of the problem. The international coalition must see that it needs to side with the proponents of democracy who resist both Assad and ISIS with light weapons.
In the midst of all these incidents, we also learned from a video attributed to Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram, which has caused great bloodshed in Nigeria, that Shekau has pledged his allegiance to the ISIS leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. In brief, while terrorist organizations are growing on an international scale, the international coalition does not try to root out the source of terrorism.
However, ending Assad's dictatorship in Syria would give peace a chance, not only in Syria, but also in the whole Middle East. In this way, the Shiite tyranny over the Sunnis in Iraq could be brought to an end, since they are supported by Assad. ISIS does not have any difficulty surviving thanks to the tyranny and pressure of Assad and Shiites on Sunnis in Syria and Iraq. Each day that passes without overthrowing Assad's dictatorship is a lost day in our fight against terrorism.
Turkey rightfully addresses the international coalition and argues that they should also contend with Assad's terror along with ISIS, adding that Turkey is ready to do its part. Even the fight against ISIS solidifies Assad's power each day. Herein is the actual danger.
The number of EU countries and leaders that see this threat is increasing. But apart from issuing statements, they have to enable the international coalition to practice the correct strategy by convincing the U.S.
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