Turkey will take action on border town if it receives no help

Turkish President Erdogan arrives for a conference in Istanbul Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan arrives for a conference in Istanbul, Turkey May 17, 2016. REUTERS/Murad Sezer

ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkey will take it upon itself to deal with attacks on the border town of Kilis if it receives no outside help, President Tayyip Erdogan said on Tuesday, in a sign Ankara may be willing to act against Islamic State on its own.

“We will overcome the Islamic State. We will solve that issue ourselves if we don’t receive help to prevent those rockets from hitting Kilis,” Erdogan told an international meeting of ministers in Istanbul.

Kilis, which is just across the border from an Islamic State-controlled area of Syria, has come under frequent rocket fire in recent weeks. Turkish officials say Ankara needs more help from the U.S.-led coalition in protecting its border.

(Writing by Ece Toksabay; Editing by David Dolan)

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