The cooperation between the Turkish police and British police has intensified after three British girls Shamima Begum, 15, Amira Abase, 15, and Kadiza Sultana, 16, went missing from East London in early February and reportedly arrived in Turkey to cross into Syria.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu commented on the issue of 'foreign fighters' on Monday during his visit to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh as part of his Asia-Pacific tour. He pointed to the importance of the timing of intelligence-sharing between Turkey and other countries, saying that the best solution for fighters to be stopped is to take necessary precautions before the fighters leave their home-country.
He said that, although intelligence sharing between Turkey and the home-countries of foreign fighters is better than it was three months ago, it still needs to improve. According to the Foreign Minister, even if foreign fighters cannot travel into Syria through Turkey, they will find another way into ISIS-controlled territory sooner or later, if they really put their minds into it. This is why necessary precautions need to be taken before the fighters leave their home-countries, according to the Minister.
The Turkish police intelligence group has monitored more than a thousand people arriving in Turkey this year, and sent nearly half of them back to their countries.