Airport security to be tightened with facial recognition

Facial recognition technology will be implemented at Turkey's airports within two months, the government announced on Sunday.

Customs and Commerce Minister Bülent Tüfenkçi told reporters that the system currently in use at border crossings will be installed at airports soon after their imports from the United States are completed. The move comes amid concerns of a rise in attempts of illegal crossings as a civil war brews in Turkey's southern neighbor Syria. DAESH is known to recruit foreign fighters, especially from Europe, who use Turkey as a transit route to join the terrorist organization active in Syria and Iraq.

The latest figures show some 27,000 people from more than 100 countries were stopped as they attempted to travel to Syria to join the militants. Tüfenkçi says X-ray scans will also be introduced at airports. "Luggage will be automatically scanned before their delivery to passengers. So, we will be able to accelerate passenger traffic and facilitate the detection of suspects and suspicious items," the minister told reporters.