Turkey to send 11 ISIL members back to France

İZMİR/ANKARA-Anadolu Agency

As part of Turkey's policy of repatriating foreign ISIL members to their home countries, 11 French national members of the terror group will be sent back to France at beginning of December, Turkish interior minister said on Nov. 28

"This week we will carry out repatriations to Belgium and Ireland on [Nov. 29] and [Nov. 30]. Also, we will send 11 French national Daesh members back to France at the beginning of December," Süleyman Soylu said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIL.

The minister's remarks came during a speech at a conference on migration in the Aegean province of Izmir.

Several European countries have resisted Turkey's efforts to repatriate ISIL terrorists, but Turkey has vowed to press forward.

Saying that peace and stability should be promoted in regions that are sources of migrants, Soylu stressed: "Unless we clear out the activities of the [terrorist] PKK/PYD and Daesh, there is no way we can stop migration. Turkey is serious about migration management because the country is serious about fighting terrorism.”

Meanwhile, police in the Turkish capital Ankara detained nine foreign nationals for their suspected links to the ISIL terror group, according to information obtained by Anadolu Agency on Nov. 28.

The suspects, who were rounded up in simultaneous operations in Ankara, were also thought to have connections with terrorists in conflict zones, the source added.

The operations were conducted following the arrest warrants which were issued for 10 suspects by Ankara prosecutor's office.

Regarding refugees in Turkey, Soylu said some 370,000 Syrian refugees have returned to their country.

The Defense Ministry on Nov. 28 also made an announcement about Syrians voluntarily returning to their homeland.

“593 Syrian brethren who fled PKK/YPG terror group's oppression by seeking refuge in Jarablus [Jarabulus] (Operation Euphrates Shield area) have begun voluntarily returning to their Tal Abyad homes in a safe manner,” the ministry said in a tweet.

“Our Syrian brethren continue returning to their homes in the Operation Peace Spring area,” it added.