Turkey PM Calls for No-Fly Zone over Northen Syria

A handout picture provided by Turkish Prime Minister Press office shows, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu watch with binoculars during a his visit to military base at Syrian border in Kilis city, Turkey, August 08, 2015. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has called for the establishment of a no-fly zne over nothern Syria to to protect civilians fleeing the Islamic State (IS) group and Syrian government forces.

In an interview with the BBC, Davutoglu also fended off claims that Turkey had previously supported extremist groups such as IS or al-Nusra during the earlier stage of the civil war in Syria.

Turkey has been bombing targets of outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in the southeast of the country and also in neighboring Iraq over the last few weeks, alongside IS targets in Syria. This happened after two years of ceasefire between Ankara and the PKK.

"You can not say if al-Qaeda attacks Britain it is a war between Britain and al-Qaeda. This is a terrorist attack... No government, neither European or American democratic government can tolerate a group which is calling people for rebellion against the legitimate government," the Prime Minister told the BBC, denying Ankara was at war with the Kurds and describing the developments as actions against a terrorist group.

He didn't rule out sending troops in northern Syria, but added he preferred to help the country's moderate opposition.

The interview comes as Davutoglu and opposition leader Kemal Kilicdaroglu are set to meet for make-or-break talks on Thursday hoping to reach an agreement on forming a coalition government.

Turkish politicians have until the last days of August to forge a government. If they fail, early elections will be held this autumn.

Washington later dismissed Davutoglu's claim that he was working with the US to establish a "safe area" in Syria where part of the civilians currently seeking asylim in Turkey could return.

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