After much speculation about where it stands, Turkey is now signaling that it will no longer sit on the fence regarding the Islamic State (IS) and will participate in efforts against it in any way needed.
Ankara has finally taken a position after securing the release of 49 Turkish hostages, including its consul general, who were kidnapped in June as IS overran Mosul. Ankara’s decision also comes after IS achieved serious recent advances in northern Syria, forcing hundreds of thousands of mostly Kurdish refugees to flee toward the Turkish border.