- Title: TURKEY-SYRIA/BRITONS Turkey detains nine Britons crossing into Syria
- Date: 1st April 2015
- Summary: ANKARA, TURKEY (APRIL 2, 2015 - INTERVIEW CONDUCTED SHORTLY AFTER MIDNIGHT) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Turkish) REPUBLICAN PEOPLE'S PARTY (CHP) LAWMAKER, MEHMET ALI EDIPOGLU, SAYING: "They are being held at a paramilitary outpost in Reyhanli. Probably, they will be deported to their country tomorrow (meaning April 2)."
- Embargoed: 16th April 2015 13:00
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- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVAAS8NWWWH2KCY9IPB5UNR2ZR5T
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Turkish security forces arrested nine British nationals trying to cross illegally into Syria, the Turkish military said in a statement on Wednesday (April 1).
The Britons were arrested near Hatay province on the Turkish side of the Syrian border. It was not clear why the nine people were trying to cross the frontier.
"Today (meaning April 1), nine Britons were captured in Ogulpinar, one of border villages of Reyhanli town. Ogulpinar is across Syrian town of Atmeh where Al- Nusra has its headquarters," Turkish lawmaker Mehmet Ali Edipoglu told Reuters shortly after midnight on Thursday (April 2).
"They are being held at a paramilitary outpost in Reyhanli. Probably, they will be deported to their country tomorrow (meaning April 2)," he added.
Thousands of foreigners have joined the ranks of Islamic State and other radical groups in Syria and Iraq, many of them crossing through Turkey.
Turkey has faced criticism for not better controlling its southeastern borders, and in turn has accused European countries of failing to prevent would-be jihadists from travelling in the first place.
Ediboglu said the Britons detained on Wednesday were not part of a group of foreign medical students and doctors who were thought to have travelled to Syria to work in hospitals controlled by Islamic State last month.
Ten of the group, aged between 19-25, flew from the Sudanese capital Khartoum to Istanbul on March 12. An 11th member of the group - which also includes two Sudanese - flew to Istanbul from Toronto before they crossed together illegally into Syria, according to Ediboglu, an opposition MP in the Hatay border region who is trying to help their parents find the men and women.
"When we heard that nine Britons were captured, the families (of eleven doctors working at a hospital controlled by Islamic State) who are in Hatay called me and asked if they were their children. They were very excited, So was I. Since I am currently in Ankara, I have spoken to security forces in Hatay and asked if these Britons are the ones we are seeking. Unfortunately they are not. This is another British group of fighters, militants, who were detained as they were crossing into Syria. This is the information I got." Edipoglu said.
He said members of the group were still texting to their families every day, and one of the students has indicated that she wants to return home.
"It doesn't seem possible to bring back these kids unless they want to do so themselves. Security officials who went to fetch them say they can't force them to go back (to their home country). However, we received good news today (meaning April 1). A female student, 19-year-old Lena, sent a message to her family saying she wanted to go back. We will try tomorrow (meaning April 2) to bring her and those who are with her back, if we can persuade them," Edipoglu said.
Britain's security services estimate that some 600 Britons have gone to Syria or Iraq to join militant groups, including the man known as "Jihadi John", who has appeared in several Islamic State beheading videos.
Islamic State's attempt to create a theocratic Sunni Muslim 'caliphate' by violent means has attracted thousands of recruits from Europe and around the world.
Three British schoolgirls are thought to have travelled through Turkey to Syria in February to join the militant group, in one of the most high-profile recent cases.
Their families and British authorities have made repeated appeals for them to return home. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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