Turkey has been the home of a sizable Uyghur population in the Middle East fleeing from the Xinjiang conflict.
[4] Often Uyghurs who wished to migrate to Europe and the United States often choose Turkey as the transit point.
[6] Since the Syrian Civil War, Uyghurs have participated in several jihadist battalion groups, some of which are believed to have connections with the Turkish government.
Uyghurs in Turkey have partly contributed to them, notably the Turkistan Islamic Party in Syria.
[8] The ambassador said that most Uyghur fighters in the region had been fighting "under their own banner" of separatism, though he stated that a minority had fought with ISIL.