Islamic State push forward as Turkey decides whether to take military action

The Turkish government is pondering whether to permit coalition forces to use its territory, allowing cross-border military incursions in Syria and Iraq in the fight against Islamic State.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has upheld his view in a statement earlier this week, insisting that airstrikes along will not be sufficient to curb the advancement of Islamic State militants.

Islamic State fighters on the Turkish border are posing a significant threat, the Turkish government acknowledged but it is concerned any action taken may strengthen Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants, a group that historically fought the Turkish state. The PKK is currently undergoing fragile peace talks with the Turkish government.

Soner Cagaptay, director of the Turkish Research Program, recently referred to Islamic State as “Turkey's greatest existential threat since 1946."

Islamic State militants have sieged hundreds of villages around Kobani, an area on the boarder of Syria and Turkey.

According to sources, a US-led airstrike recently hit a village near Kobani on Wednesday, yet so far the attacks have done little to hinder Islamic States advances.