"RT's report highlights some alarming evidence that Turkey is buying oil from Daesh, and is either supporting or turning a blind eye to terrorists crossing its border into Syria. If this is the case, Turkey needs to stop aiding Daesh in its murderous activities," Lord Peter Truscott, a member of the UK's House of Lords, observed.
The documents, which RT journalists filmed, were gathered in the recently liberated city of al-Shaddadi in northern Syria. They provide a detailed account of Daesh's oil revenues. For instance, on January 11, 2016, Daesh received $38,342 from selling 1,925 barrels of oil extracted from the Kabibah oil field.
Former UK ambassador to Syria Peter Ford echoed the sentiment. "There was plenty of evidence even before these latest – very damning – revelations that Turkey was up to its neck in support for collaboration with Islamic State," he said.
Analyst Stanislav Ivanov also told Radio Sputnik that RT's crew confirmed what was already known. "Syria and Russia have long said that Turkey is directly involved in cooperating with Daesh and other radical groups, that the country has become a transit corridor for smuggling fighters and selling oil," he noted, adding that Turkey has been "caught red-handed."
Russia's envoy to the EU Vladimir Chizhov expressed hope that the West would react to RT's report since "turning a blind eye to similar reports is becoming simply embarrassing."
