Turkey arrests foreign Daesh terrorist wanted by France
Wanted Daesh terrorist Soumaya Raissi is escorted by Turkish security forces after being taken into custody, in Adana, Turkey, Oct. 16, 2020. (AA Photo)


Daesh terrorist Soumaya Raissi, wanted by France with a Red Notice, was arrested in southern Turkey's Adana province Friday.

On Oct. 14, security forces in Adana captured Raissi, who is also wanted by Interpol, at her house where she was hiding.

Originally from Tunisia, 30-year-old Raissi was living in the province's Namık Kemal neighborhood with a fake Syrian identity.

After being taken into custody, the woman was interrogated for two days by security forces. Raissi denied everything in her statement and claimed that she escaped France due to domestic violence committed by her husband.

Raissi was a fugitive and wanted by France for four years. It was revealed that she entered Turkey five months ago from Syria.

Her first husband, Richard Raissi, was captured and arrested in southeastern Gaziantep province back in 2016. He was then evicted and deported from Turkey.

It was also determined that Raissi's brother-in-law is also a Daesh member.

After escaping to Syria, the terrorist group picked a member for Raissi to marry. She then had a child from this second marriage.

Interpol released a notification on Raissi, expressing that she is capable of committing "dangerous actions" and should be detained as soon as possible.

Turkey recognized Daesh as a terrorist group in 2013, and since then, the country has been attacked numerous times, including 10 suicide bombings, seven bombings and four armed assaults, which have killed 315 people and injured hundreds more.

Previously, Turkish intelligence played a key role in the death of Daesh leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi by detaining and extraditing one of his aides to Iraq, who provided U.S. authorities with critical information for locating him.

The country also detained the so-called "Turkey emir" of Daesh, named Mahmut Özden, in August. He was planning to carry out an attack on Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque and target politicians, nongovernmental organization (NGO) heads and other prominent figures in Turkey, according to the official investigation.

Although the terrorist group has been largely defeated in Iraq and Syria, its presence still poses a threat, as individuals following its ideology encourage others to carry out violence. European analysts have also warned against attacks by Daesh, as attacks by isolated individuals not under the watch of intelligence services have become more common.