Militant who appeared in ISIL propaganda video ‘detained twice’ in Turkey

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militant who appeared in a propaganda video by the jihadist group threatening Turkey has previously been detained twice in Turkey and released, according to information gathered by the Doğan News Agency. 

The recently identified militant, Hasan Aydın from ISIL’s “Yaşar Group,” was detained by police in 2012 and 2015. 

Aydın was detained in 2012 in an operation targeting al-Qaeda in the southern province of Adana but was later released. He was again detained in 2015 while attempting to cross the border into Syria from the southern province of Hatay.

Military equipment and a drone were found in the minibus that Aydın was using and he was referred to court. 

He was later released on condition of judicial control. 

It has emerged that Aydın’s family moved to Adana’s Yüreğir district 40 years ago from the Çermik district of the southeastern province of Diyarbakır. 

His brother’s reported him as missing, with his wife and two children, on May. 8, 2015. Aydın called his family four months later and told them he had joined ISIL. 

“We have arrived in Syria. We are in Manbij, we are doing fine, don’t worry about us,” he reportedly told his family. 

Aydın’s two older brothers Remzi and Recep Aydın were detained in an operation in Adana on Dec. 31, 2016 and were later arrested. Davut Aydın, the ISIL militant’s third older brother who was detained in the same operation, was referred to court and was released on condition of judicial control. Saying that his brother should have been arrested, Davut Aydın said the family is suffering.

“I wish they had arrested him at that time rather than releasing him. If that had been the case, Hasan Aydın would be in jail and my nieces would be with me. At least then he [Hasan Aydın] wouldn’t be able to serve such a cruel group. Now I don’t even know if my nieces are alive,” he told the Doğan News Agency.