12 Iraqis captured before crossing into Turkey

HATAY – Doğan News Agency

DHA Photo

Twelve Iraqis have been detained in Turkey’s southern province of Hatay while attempting to illegally cross the Turkish-Syrian border in the wake of violent attacks near and on the border in recent weeks.

The Iraqis, including a child and two women, were captured in the Görentaş neighborhood in Hatay’s Yayladağı district on July 27 after they were discovered by the local gendarmerie forces from the Belengöz Gendarmerie Station, who were on their daily patrol at the time.

The gendarmerie forces called on the Iraqis to stop, but the Iraqis kept moving. They were then arrested after the gendarmerie forces firing warning shots in the air.

An investigation has been launched into whether the Iraqis have links to terrorist organizations purportedly carrying out violent attacks on Turkish security personnel across Turkey’s eastern and southeastern regions in particular.

Tension is on the rise near and on the Syrian border as Turkey has seen two weeks of violent attacks against its security personnel following the deadly Suruç bombing that left dozens dead and more than a hundred injured early last week.