Umit Bektas/Reuters
The Islamic State has released a video that claims to show two Turkish soldiers being burned alive after Ankara vowed revenge against the terror group for the death of 16 soldiers in Syria. The 19-minute video, published on popular jihadist websites, shows two men dragged out from a cage before being tied up and set on fire. Speaking in Turkish, a jihadist fighter then calls for “destruction to be sowed” against Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. Although the authenticity of the video could not immediately be verified, IS-linked media did report the capture of two Turkish soldiers last month, and the Turkish side confirmed that it lost contact with two soldiers. The video comes just a day after the Turkish military lost 16 of its soldiers to attacks launched by IS in Syria. Erdogan reacted to the loss by vowing to continue the fight against the terror group despite having to “lay martyrs to rest.”