Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Asharq Al-Awsat
Asharq Al-Awsat
World
Asharq Al-Awsat

3 French Women Arrested in Turkey for ISIS Links

A member of Turkish police special forces stands guard in Azaz, Syria January 24, 2018. REUTERS/Osman Orsal

Three French citizens suspected of ISIS membership were detained along with nine children as they tried to enter Turkey from Syria, Turkish media reported Thursday.

Turkish authorities stopped the three women, sought by Interpol and identified by their initials JC, CA and MD, in the border province of Kilis, according to state news agency Anadolu.

A security source told AFP that JC referred to Jennifer Clain, niece of the brothers Fabien and Jean-Michel Clain, who claimed responsibility on behalf of ISIS for the attacks that hit the Bataclan nightclub and other Paris locations in November 2015.

She is also married to Kevin Gonot, a French citizen sentenced to death in Iraq last May for his role in the terrorist organization.

Anadolu said 12 people had been arrested and were being transferred to immigration authorities awaiting their expulsion from Turkey. 

In the first years after the Syrian conflict began in 2011, Turkey was the main point of entry for foreign militants seeking to join extremist groups. 

Accused of turning a blind eye to the problem, Ankara later tightened border controls and began widespread arrests and extraditions, especially after a spate of devastating terrorist attacks in Turkey.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.