ISIL militants who crossed into Turkey pose serious threat: Prosecutor
Mesut Hasan Benli – ANKARA
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militants who crossed into Turkey after being defeated in Syria and Iraq pose a serious threat, according to a prosecutor investigating one of the jihadists.
According to the indictment prepared by Ankara Public Prosecutor Adem Akıncı, the militants may carry out attacks in Turkey after crossing into the country from Syria and Iraq.
Recent reports said dozens of ISIL militants crossed into Turkey after losing swathes of territory in Syria and Iraq, and police operations against suspected jihadists across Turkey were stepped up as a result.
One of those apprehended in anti-terror raids, Emin Hüseyin Sihho, is believed to have been one of the snipers of ISIL.
Sihho, who was born in Mosul, was caught in Ankara on Oct. 4 after crossing into Turkey from Syria and was later arrested over “being member of an armed terrorist organization.”
In the indictment into Sihho’s jihadist activities, prosecutor Akıncı said he received training from ISIL in Iraq’s Tal Afar to be a sniper and was active among the jihadist youth.
“I stayed in Syria for a month. I absolutely didn’t join the group. I also didn’t receive sniper training,” Sihho said in his testimony, denying accusations.
In addition to details of Sihho’s alleged ISIL-linked activities, the indictment includes warnings on possible ISIL infiltration into Turkey after recent losses across the border.
“These individuals, who have received training from the ISIL terror group and gained battle experience in Syria and Iraq, pose a serious threat in line with their terrorist ideology and in terms of their possible actions,” the indictment stated.
The indictment also included details on ISIL’s structuring in Ankara.
“In the intelligence works it was determined that individuals within the Tekfirci Murat Gezenler Ankara group traveled between Syria and Turkey,” it also said.
