Turkey is seeking the return of approximately citizens held in Kurdish-run prisons in northern Syria on suspicion of ISIS affiliation, according to a report by the Kısa Dalga news outlet.
The effort follows the US's recent move to begin transferring up to 7,000 ISIS prisoners from northeastern Syria to Iraq. That transfer came after Kurdish-led authorities in the region reached a deal with Damascus to hand over control of the territory to the Syrian interim government.
The Kısa Dalga report, citing talks between Ankara, Baghdad and Washington, says that Ankara wants to arrange the transfer of its citizens currently imprisoned in Syria to Turkey following initial investigations and legal proceedings in Iraq.
While around 2,000 Turkish nationals who have declared their identity are currently held in detention centers in northern Syria, not all detainees have accurately disclosed their nationality, and some may have provided false or incomplete information, according to the report.
Many of the ISIS fighters were captured by the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) during the collapse of the group’s self-declared caliphate in the 2010s.
Among the individuals sought by Turkey is a fugitive suspect wanted in connection with the Oct 2015 twin suicide bombings in Ankara that killed over 100 people and injured more than 500 during a pro-Kurdish and leftist rally. Turkey has been searching for the suspect under a red notice. He is reportedly being held in a northern Syrian prison and may be among those to be transferred to Iraq.
The same case also involves other fugitives, including İlhami Balı, Deniz Büyükçelebi, Edremit Türe, Savaş Yıldız, Hasan Hüseyin Uğur, Bayram Yıldız, Kenan Kutval, Ahmet Güneş, Cebrail Kaya, Ömer Deniz Dündar, Muhammet Zana Alkan, Mustafa Delibaşlar, Nusret Yılmaz, Kasım Dere and Yakup Selağzı. Official records indicate that these suspects fled to Syria after the attacks. Some of these suspects may still be held in prisons in northern Syria.
Ankara, Baghdad and Washington are reportedly in agreement that ISIS members should face charges including “crimes against humanity” and “genocide.” (VK)
