Turkish authorities deport eight more Islamic State foreign fighters

Turkey has begun the procedure to repatriate another 8 Islamic State (ISIS) foreign fighters: 7 German nationals and one UK national, the Turkish interior ministry said Thursday. On Monday an American, a German and a Danish had already been deported.

The deportation of the 7 Germans had been previously announced by Turkish interior minister Suleyman Soylu, who on Wednesday publicly thanked Germany and the Netherlands for their willingness to cooperate with the repatriation.

Over the coming days, Ankara has said, another 15 alleged ISIS fighters will be deported: 11 French nationals, 2 Germans, and two Irish nationals. The government under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that it intends to continue deporting even the fighters whose native countries have taken their citizenship away from them.

There are 1,200 alleged ISIS fighters in Turkish prisons, including many from Western countries. Another 287, most of whom of foreign origins, have been captured by Turkish forces after the beginning of an offensive that began on October 9 against the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in northeastern Syria.

Source: Ansamed