Two Iraqi nationals accused of membership in the Daesh terrorist group will be deported to Iraq, Turkish authorities announced yesterday.
Two men identified only by their initials, N.A.W.W. and S.D.A.A., were captured by security forces in operations against the terrorist group in the northern Turkish province of Samsun on Oct. 18. They were released yesterday after they were interrogated by the prosecutor's office and were set to be deported on an unspecified date.
In related news, four other Iraqi nationals linked to Daesh were apprehended in counterterrorism operations in Samsun yesterday.
Daesh, which is blamed for a string of terror attacks in Turkey in the past three years, saw a decline in membership with militants fleeing Syria and Iraq where it once controlled large swathes of land. Turkey helped Syrian rebels in a 2016 operation in war-torn Syria to regain control of Daesh-controlled towns, and since 2017 it has stopped more than 5,000 foreigners looking to join the terrorist group by crossing into Iraq and Syria through the country's southern borders. Security forces have also foiled 10 attack plots. Figures show that some 18,500 suspects are currently being monitored for links to the terrorist group after being identified at airports upon arrival.
