Yahoo – AFP, Fulya Ozerkan, 12 March 2015
ANKARA (Turkey) (AFP) - Turkey on Thursday said it had detained an intelligence agent working for one of the nations in the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State (IS) for helping three British teenage girls cross into Syria to join the jihadists.
A
combination of CCTV pictures shows (L-R) British teenagers Kadiza
Sultana,
Amira Abase and Shamima Begum (AFP Photo)
|
ANKARA (Turkey) (AFP) - Turkey on Thursday said it had detained an intelligence agent working for one of the nations in the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State (IS) for helping three British teenage girls cross into Syria to join the jihadists.
The
surprise revelation by Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu appeared aimed at
deflecting sustained criticism from Western countries that Turkey is failing to
halt the flow of jihadists across its borders.
"Do
you know who helped those girls? He was captured. He was someone working for
the intelligence (service) of a country in the coalition," Cavusoglu told
the A-Haber channel in an interview published by the official Anatolia news
agency.
A Turkish
government official told AFP that the agent was arrested by Turkey's security
forces 10 days ago, and added that the person was not a Turkish citizen.
"We
informed all the countries concerned," the official said, speaking on
condition of anonymity.
"It's
not an EU member, it's also not the United States. He is working for the
intelligence of a country within the coalition," Cavusoglu added, without
further specifying the nationality of the detained agent.
Cavusoglu
said he had informed his British counterpart Philip Hammond of the development.
"He
told me 'just as usual'," said Cavusoglu, without explaining further.
Close
friends Kadiza Sultana, 16, and 15-year-olds Shamima Begum and Amira Abase,
crossed into Syria after boarding a flight from London to Istanbul on February
17.
They took a
bus from Istanbul to the southeastern Turkish city of Sanliurfa close to the
Syrian border, from where they are believed to have crossed the frontier.
The
disappearance of the girls has alarmed Britain and raised questions about what
motivates such young people to go to Syria.
'Turkey
always a scapegoat'
Turkey has
long expressed irritation over the repeated criticism from the West that Ankara
is not doing enough to stop jihadists and their sympathisers crossing into
Syria.
The
government official said the case of the missing girls showed closer
cooperation was needed.
"Turkey
is always blamed as a scapegoat but this case has shown that we need more
cooperation in the fight against Daesh," the official said, using an
alternative name for IS.
"The
region's security cannot be put on Turkey's shoulders alone," the
government official added.
Turkey
accused Britain last month of a "reprehensible" delay in informing
the Turkish authorities about the departure of the three teenage girls for its
territory.
Along with
the US and EU states, Arabian peninsula nations including Saudi Arabia and
Qatar have been involved in the coalition against IS.
Canadian
special forces and fighter jets are also deployed in the region, but a senior
official in Ottawa told AFP the suspect "is not a Canadian citizen"
and "was not employed by" its spy agency.
Turkey has
played a limited role in the US-led coalition against the IS group due to
differences with Washington, which for the moment prefers to focus on battling
the jihadists while putting off any potential confrontation with Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
One
consequence of the discord with the United States is Ankara's refusal to open
its Incirlik air base in southern Turkey for use by coalition combat aircraft
fighting IS militants.
Cavusoglu
on Thursday said Turkey would evaluate all its options, including the use of
Incirlik, based on a "comprehensive strategy."
Ankara has
repeatedly called for the creation of a safe zone inside Syria for refugees
fleeing the government offensive.
Last month,
the United States and Turkey signed a deal to train and equip thousands of
moderate Syrian rebel forces.
US special
envoy John Allen, who is coordinating international efforts against IS, is due
to travel to Ankara this week to meet with Turkish officials after a visit to
Italy, the US State Department said in a statement.
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