Authorities in Turkey have confirmed social media reports that an injured Islamic State commander is being treated in a Denizli hospital, saying the militant has every right to receive medical care as he is a Turkish citizen.
The man, identified as Emrah Cakan, has reportedly been recovering in a hospital in Denizli in southwestern Turkey since February 28.
He was among 1,000 Turks, who joined the Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), and quickly rose to the rank of a senior commander.
Cakan’s treatment “was started upon his own application,” the Denizli governor’s office said in a statement.
“The procedural acts concerning his injury were conducted by our border city during his entry to our country and they still continue. And his treatment continues as a part of his right to benefit from health services just like all our citizens,” it added.
Meanwhile, the Kurds, who have been fighting IS for the strategic city of Kobani on the Turkish-Syrian border since September, don’t seem to be as welcome in Turkey’s medical institutions as Islamic State militants.