ANKARA, October 10 (RIA Novosti) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday accused the opposition Republican People's Party and the Kurdish Democratic People's Party of provoking the ongoing protests in the country, which have already claimed 31 lives.
On October 2, Turkey's parliament approved the use of its territory and airspace for foreign militaries fighting the Islamic State (IS). According to the parliamentary decision, the Turkish army can be used in operations abroad within one year, while foreign militaries will be permitted to be stationed in the country.
"They opposed the request in Parliament, and then instigated violence, claiming that Turkey is not helping Kobani," Erdogan said, addressing the rally in the Turkish city Trabzon.
The Turkish president stressed that the government would initiate a firm response to the riots.
Since Monday, Turkey has faced mass protests by the Kurdish population perturbed by Erdogan's noninterference policy toward developments in the Syrian border town of Kobani.
For the past three weeks, Islamic State militants have besieged Kobani (also known as Ayn al-Arab), one of the largest towns in the Kurdish region bordering Turkey. The extremist group controls some 60 villages around the city.
More than 400 people have died in clashes between IS and Kurdish fighters in Kobani, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Some 200,000 refugees have crossed into Turkey to flee the IS threat.
