Conflicts in Iraq and Syria have produced a significant number of extremists in Central Asia and Xinjiang, providing prime recruiting targets for the Islamic State (IS) and other terrorist groups.
Intelligence sources in Ankara estimate at least 1,500 recruits from Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan) and Xinjiang (a Uighur autonomous region of northwest China) are already fighting for IS in Syria and Iraq.