French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Laudrian called for an urgent meeting of the international coalition to discuss Turkish intervention in northeastern Syria, warning of the danger of the return of the Islamic State to Syria and Iraq.
In a press conference held in Baghdad on Thursday morning with his Iraqi counterpart Mohammed Ali al-Hakim, Ludrian added that the gains made by the coalition against ISIS are threatened today by the Turkish incursion.
For his part, Hakim said that Iraq is taking all the necessary security measures to prevent the infiltration of foreign fighters from ISIS across the border with Syria.
Hakim added that Iraq is committed to the restoration of all Iraqi fighters in the organization and prosecution before the Iraqi judiciary, calling on other countries to take similar measures.
Hakim also stressed that the Syrian government is responsible for the unity and integrity of the Syrian border.
During his visit to Iraq, he is expected to discuss the possibility of transferring and prosecuting foreign armed elements, including 60 French nationals detained in northeastern Syria.
The SDF is holding more than 12,000 ISIS operatives, including 2,500 to 3,000 foreigners.
So far, 14 French nationals convicted of joining ISIS have been sentenced in Iraq. Of these, 12 have been transferred from northern Syria to Baghdad, 11 have been sentenced to death, and three, including two women, have been sentenced to life imprisonment.