Man Arrested In Turkey For Aiding British Teens To Join ISIS An 'Agent'; ISIS Claims Suicide Bomber Was Australian
A man suspected to help three British school girls join the ISIS in Syria, has been arrested in Turkey. Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu revealed that the man was an intelligence agent working for a coalition member country.
15-year-old British teens Shamima Begum and Amira Abase and 16 year-old Kadiza Sultana have left their homes in east London in February to join ISIS. The families of the girls had criticised the police for not doing enough to stop them, reports The Guardian.
Cavusoglu told Turkey’s state broadcaster that the agent was not a citizen of the United States or an EU member country. The Turkish foreign minister declined to give any further details on where or how the suspect was captured. He said he has informed British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond about the arrest.
Previous reports have indicated that the man who aided the British school girls had ties in Canada but officials said the person was neither a Canadian citizen nor employed in the country’s intelligence agency.
The British girls, students in Bethnal Green Academy in east London, had crossed Syria after taking a flight from London to Istanbul on Feb. 17. Authorities said they rode a bus from Istanbul to reach the Sanliurfa, which is close to the Syrian border.
Officials believe that the girls were able to enter Syria. Thousands of foreigners from more than 80 countries including Britain have travelled to the Middle East to join the ranks of ISIS fighters.
Meanwhile, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the government is currently investigating reports of an Australian teenager allegedly involved in a suicide attack in Iraq. ISIS has claimed in social media that it sent an Australian teen to Anbar province and blew himself up.
The extremist group posted a photo of 18-year-old James Bilardi of Melbourne preparing for a suicide attack, reports ABC. ISIS had claimed that Abu Abdullah al-Australi, Bilardi’s pseudonym, along with four other foreign fighters were killed while carrying out suicide attacks in the city of Ramadi in Iraq.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said there were unconfirmed reports about a suicide bomber being Australian. He added that it only reflects how ISIS lures “impressionable youngsters.”
Bishop said Bilardi’s passport was cancelled in October on the recommendation of Australia’s security agencies. Police had searched his family’s home in Melbourne after his disappearance and discovered chemicals that can be used to build an explosive device. No actual bombs were found inside the house.
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