The Dutch General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) has said the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, or ISIS) is using Turkey as a strategic base to reorganize, posing a threat to the security of Europe, the Kurdistan24 news website reported.
In a report published on Monday, AIVD said that after the start of the Syrian conflict, Turkey “was for a long time a springboard for an unprecedented number of foreign fighters who traveled to Syria from all over the world.”
“ISIS (and also Al Qaida) use Turkey as a strategic base,” the report said. “From here, ISIS can recover, reorganize and further shape the underground struggle in the region.”
AIVD also said the extremist group was able to exploit “the relative peace in Turkey to forge plans to (re)shape its still present international ambitions.”
According to Dutch intelligence, the Turkish government does not consider jihadist groups a security threat.
“The fact that Turkish interests do not always correspond with European priorities in the field of counterterrorism is problematic,” the report continued, noting that Turkish authorities do act against both ISIS and al Qaeda but prioritize the fight against the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), for instance.
“As a result, both organizations have enough breathing space and freedom of movement to be able to maintain themselves.”