ASHGABAT -- Turkmen former members of the "Islamic State" (IS) in Syria are scattering after the terrorist movement's defeat at the hands of US-backed forces, the Vienna-based Turkmen Initiative for Human Rights (TIHR) said in a statement Wednesday (July 3), citing its sources in Turkey.
"Some of them have relocated to parts of Afghanistan that border Turkmenistan; others have joined the Free Syrian Army [FSA], which is fighting against [Bashar] al-Assad's regime," TIHR said.
One of the Turkmen members of the FSA, who identified himself as Kakajan, said he and several other Turkmens joined the anti-al-Assad force after trying but failing to return to Turkmenistan via Turkey.
Several hundred Turkmens who fought for IS are presently in Homs, Syria, according to TIHR, which spoke to refugees who had spent time in the city.
