Pentagon Report: Turkey’s Operation Helps ISIS to Rebuild Itself

* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA)

Click to read the article in Turkish / Kurdish

The Defense Intelligence Agency of the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) has released a report, including a commentary on the Operation Peace Spring launched by Turkey into northern Syria on October 9.

The report has indicated that Turkey's operation and the subsequent withdrawal of US troops "has allowed ISIS to rebuild itself and boosted its ability to launch attacks abroad", as reported by CNN International.

Referring to AFP news, BBC Türkçe has also reported that "the report has indicated that ISIS might be preparing for a new attack in the West."

'ISIS has exploited the Turkish incursion'

The Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency has stated in the report that "ISIS has exploited the Turkish incursion and subsequent drawdown of US troops from northeastern Syria to reconstitute its capabilities and resources both within Syria in the short term and globally in the longer term."

In the introduction, Principal Deputy Inspector General Glenn Fine has written, "The withdrawal and redeployment of US troops has also affected the fight against ISIS, which remains a threat in the region and globally."

'Baghdadi's death will have little effect'

Referring to the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in late October as "a significant blow" to ISIS, the report has still underlined that "his death will have little effect on ISIS's ability to reconstitute."

The report was published on Tuesday (November 19) and covers the period of July 1 and October 25, 2019.

Operation into northern Syria

After US President Donald Trump announced that US forces had been withdrawn from the area, Turkish Armed Forces (TAF) and its allying Free Syrian Army (FSA), or the Syrian National Army (SNA) as they call themselves now, launched a cross-border military operation into northern Syria on October 9, 2019. The name of the operation was announced as "Operation Peace Spring".

Making a statement later on, Trump said that a group of US soldiers would remain in the area "to secure the oil." (TP/SD)